A New Life
by QueenMaryofEngland
Summary: [Summery update] AU in where Francis survives his illness and he Mary get to live the rest of their lives together. All rights belong to their respective owners.
1. A Fresh Start

**Hey guys! This is my first story I've written so far. Nothing much to say except I hope you enjoy the story, and also Reign and all of its characters belong to the CW network!**

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Mary and Francis were walking away from a newly-carved boat that was docked against the edge of the river bank, as they were walking Mary couldn't help but notice that as they were walking Francis' eyes were strictly following her.

This just made her more and more thankful for Delphine and her healing gifts that bought Francis back after she was so sure he was dead. Thinking about this made her heart fill up with joy and the corners of her mouth began to rise into a smile.

"And what has gotten you so happy, my love?" Francis questioned. The answer she gave him caught him off guard with how love filled it was "I was just thinking about how lucky I am for you to be here, with me."

"I just remembered it's time for your medicine." Mary then pulled out a bottle from her pocket and took out a raisin like herb, "The doctor said you needed to take one pastel every hour for you to get better.

When Francis saw the so-called 'medicine' and gave a roll of his eyes "That is not medicine that's a weed, weeds that the horse have watered". "Now don't be a child, take and I'll reward you with a kiss" Mary said hoping it would sway Francis to take the pill.

"Fine" Francis said in a tone that was similar to one of a defeated child. He then opened his mouth and prepared himself for the worse. Mary gave a small giggle at his childish behaviour and then placed the pastel in his mouth to which he closed his mouth and very unwillingly swallowed it down whole.

"Well done, I know that you don't to like to take the pill but it is helping isn't?" Mary asked in a tender tone. Then in an effort to change the subject from Francis condition she changed her tone into an upbeat and happy one. "Well I guess it's time for your reward now."

"Yes, it is" Francis said as he took his hands and cupped her face in them. He then pulled her face towards his for a slow, but long passionate kiss that would've lasted for much longer if they had not been interrupted.

"Your majesty, I have important news from England for you that couldn't wait for an audience" ambassador Nicolas said as he approached the royal couple "And might I give my condolences for the death of your mother Marie de Guise, I heard she was poisoned by Scottish Protestant who wanted your half-brother James to be regent again.

"Thank you, ambassador, as you are most likely the only Englishmen to express sadness to the death of my mother. But, to answer your previous statement it was concluded that she was poisoned but we have yet to capture the perpetrator" Mary answered in a tone that masked the sadness she felt for the death of her mother.

"Well I didn't come here to discuss your mother's death I came to tell you about an offer my Queen, Elizabeth, has sent for you. "The Queen of England is offering you peace".

Both Mary and Francis stood there frozen "why would Elizabeth be offering peace, I mean there must be something in it for her. There is isn't there." Mary finished her sentence off in a confused state, what does she want from me, was echoing through her mind repeatedly until Nicolas answered her questioned.

"The deal is for you to give up your claim to the English throne and in exchange Elizabeth will withdraw her troops from the boarders ending the Scottish war."

Once all of what Nicolas had said had sunk into Mary's mind she gave a swift reply "This is not something I do in the moment so I will go and think this over and give you my reply at the end of the week." A simple yes was all the English ambassador gave in response and then made an exit to the castle to continue with his over works.

* * *

Meanwhile a carriage was slowly making its way towards the castle along the king's road held two noble ladies that were traveling to French court for the upcoming Harvest Festival. Inside the two women, Olivia D'Amencourt and Lady Maria daughter of the duke of Anjou.

"So are you going to be trying to gain the attention of the King again." Maria teased obviously aware of Olivia history at court.

"Actually no, I'm going to find my love Nostradamus we were meant to go to the new world together but he changed his mind last minute saying he had unfinished business" Olivia explained to her, with sadness gripping at her heart.

"Well at least you get a choice, my farther has sent for an envoy to watch over me to make sure I succeed in making myself the king's mistress. But from the rumors I've heard from court is Queen, Queen Mary is so beautiful and bewitching than men fall at her feet. It was said that when the traitor Louis of Conde attempted to take the throne of France by doing a coup, he did if for his love for the Queen" Maria contemplated whether or not even the most skilled woman in all of Europe wouldn't be able to seduce the king.

"When I went to French court, the time before last, the Queen Mother who is now said to be good friends with the Queen wanted me to remove Francis from her grip and to give her back the power she lost when Diane returned. Lets just say that it no matter what I did or whoever I was with whenever you spoke of his wife he would have this love striation face. Besides I didn't have the heart to do it and neither will you, Mary is so sweet and kind that the very thought of stealing away her husband will make your stomach turn" Olivia confirming what Maria had feared, why would she want to break the heart of such a kind person. This up coming week is going to be hell.

"We'll all you have to do is give a few attempts and then tell your farther he refused to take anyone as a mistress, and I'm sure he'll understand" Olivia said in an attempt to console her friend.

Maria was thinking that maybe if she did this her farther would understand and she wouldn't be forced to faced his wrath. A brief period of silence took place before she responded on a hushed whisper " I hope so"

* * *

Mary and Francis both retired to their chambers after the news from the English ambassador hit them. They both new that whatever choice they made would decide the fate of not only Scotland but France and England as well. They began to talk and soon it was clear what answer was the best one for them to make.

"If I refuse the offer Elizabeth will think I have every intention to make my claim to her throne and she'll hit on Scotland harder. The French army won't be able to hold out and Elizabeth will conquer all of Scotland." The idea of this even being a possibility frightened Mary deeply, but she new that renouncing her claim also had drawbacks. Drawbacks that could leave her supporters in England alone and even some of her supporters in Europe who want her on the throne. Mainly the Vatican and Spain, the most powerful country in the world.

Francis new how hard of a choice this was for her. The wrong choice could start a war with a country far more powerful then them and it would be an almost guaranteed that it would end with Mary dead. Francis took his hand from its resting position on his chair and moved it so it gently grabbed the base of Mary's chin and made it so he could look her in the eyes and told her what she needed to hear. "Mary I know that once word gets out about this offer people will try to influence your choice, so I'm going to give you this time to follow your heart and make the right choice."

"Thank you Francis, you always know what to say and do to make me feel better" Mary's tone was one that only could compare with one who was so in love with their partner that all else ceased to exist. However this was not all she had to say, after thinking it over and listening to Francis' advise she came to one conclusion that had the most positives and the least drawbacks. "At the Harvest Festival, two days from now, I will tell the court my decision. That I'm going to renounce my claim to the English throne".

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 **I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, I try to have the next one up within the week. And don't forget to leave a review and advise me on how to better story as I don't really know how to write a story. See you next week!**


	2. Unecpected suprises

**Hey guys! Next chapters up now, I tried to make it longer as I realised that last one was pretty short.**

As the Harvest Festival was nearing preparations for it were being made for it everywhere. The throne room was especially getting more attention as it is where the King and Queen are going to sit and with nobles and potential royals coming to visit now was an important for France to look strong and powerful.

And none was more stressed out than the Queen Mother, Catherine de Medici she had to organise everything and make sure it was in the right place. Catherine already had everything planned out, there were to be 100 baby piglets slaughtered for the feast tonight and silks from the finest areas of France were brought to decorate the hall and also, to make clothes for the nobles rich enough to afford them.

"No, no, no! The yellow flowers go on the table, the blue ones are for you to hang on the string on the wall!" Catherine yelled at the poor servant who had the misfortune of angering the former Queen.

The yellow flowers were to be bunched, six to a vase, and one by every other plate of food. The yellow was used as a representation of their loyaty, honour and joy to their important guests. Many people were coming and if they were to have their support then they would have to be treated right.

The blue flowers on the other hand were to be tied to strings and dangled down from the door ways to give the illusion of an enchanted forest and also one of stability as that is what this colour represented, using the wrong colour could mean a lot, as some of the people coming were Lucrecia de Medici who had an eye for these kinds of things.

Just at that moment the dangling string Catherine was looking at were parted to reveal Francis and Mary walking into the room. Both of them wearing clothes that were slightly below their stature. This was a common practice with most of the noble ladies doing it. The idea behind it is so that when you attend the ball you are to stand out more than you normally would have.

From the moment, they walked in you could hear the passing servants and a few nobles making idle gossip about them. They were the usual rumours, is Mary pregnant, has Francis taken a mistress and so on and so on. (The answer was obviously no to both, well maybe not to both.)

"Ah! Francis, Mary my dear how are you both?" Catherine exclaimed as they began to approach her, however as they grew closer see saw that the look on her son's face was not one of joy as you might've expected but instead one that said important business was going to happen soon.

Francis gave a look around to see if anyone was intently watching them, once he was satisfied that no one was going to hear the Francis began to talk "Mother, we need to talk it's about England, they've given us an offer."

Catherine's mood soon went from happy and a little bit stressed to a worried state of confusion "What have they done? Are they continuing the war? Or maybe they're going to-"

If Francis hadn't have intercepted her speech then he was sure she would've gone on forever "No mother they're not going to invade, if fact they're going to end the war and in exchange Mary will relinquish her claim on their throne" Catherine still looked a little lost so Mary continued on from where Francis left off "we taken the time to look through it and we've come to the decision that it would be best if I accept the offer, I hope you understand."

"Don't worry Mary I completely understand" the tone in which Catherine said lead Mary to believe that she was fine with her choice. "Not to be blunt though, but this is for the best. The longer you remain a threat to England the more the come after you, and with you being here in France puts our country at risk"

The minute the last word of her sentence Mary felt her stomach turn, at first, she chalked it up to the sick truth in Catherine's statement, but then it became more persistent. Then it hit her _I'm going to throw up, aren't I_ she then got a feeling that told her she needed to go to her chambers to do this, as throwing up where she was would alert the entire court who would the question her to no end about it.

"Mary dear, are you alright?" Catherine questioned, she couldn't help but notice that she had been acting… off recently. Catherine could've attributed her strange behaviour to the comment she had just made, true it may have been too harsh but Catherine de Medici was not one to sugar-coat her words and would never be caught alive doing it to the Queen of Scots.

"I-I'm fine, I think I'm going to retire to my chambers now, if you'll excuse me" and with that Mary quickly made her way towards her out of the room.

"Is she really that upset from what I said? Normally Mary stands up to me when she disagrees with what I have to say" Catherine gave out a heavy sigh which had a hint of disappointment too it.

Francis could sense what his mother was feeling and he gave her a reply that he hoped would help her understand more. "I'm sure that whatever's gotten her bothered has nothing to do with what you said. In truth, Mary has been doing this quite a lot recently."

"How recent? Should it be something to be worried about, Francis? It's not normal for a Queen to be healthy and just suddenly run off all the time" this worried both Catherine and Francis as they both didn't want her life to be in danger. She held a valuable position court as she was the one person who could give Scotland and France what it both needs, an heir.

"You know Francis, if this keeps happening people will start to think that she's taken a lover. We could have the whole Condé situation again." Catherine statement had a valid point, people were going to get suspicious if this kept happening. People who could have claims to the throne could present themselves as a better option.

"Don't mention that name in my house mother, please it causes me great pain to reflect on those times. The attack on Mary, how I nearly lost her and the coup her 'lover' attempted to pull off. But, to answer your question, no she has not taken a lover. The maids in her chambers tell me that when she is there she is on her own, and she does not write letters or any other form of communication to our enemy's. Other than that, I don't know what she does there."

Before Catherine could get a response out a boy, little over the age of 15 came over to them.

"Begging your pardon your grace, but lord Narcisse wants to see you. He says he has important news about the attempted murder of Mary, Queen of Scots" a young boy said, obviously terrified of telling the king this as he knew this would put him in a tense mood.

"What assassination attempt! Who would dare to even try something like this. Was it England, had they heard of my illness and sought to bring down Mary as they knew I'd be too weak to protect her" Francis' good mood being completely gone, for him even the possibility of a life without Mary would be hell on Earth. He loved her and without her, without her he was nothing.

The young boy continued to speak even though it was clear a day to anyone walking by that he was greatly uncomfortable "Your majesty, my lord only told me what I told you, if you want to find out more then I assume you'll have to ask him".

Getting ready to leave Francis put his goblet of wine down on the nearby table "Okay I'll go and check it out now-"

"No, no, Francis you should go be with Mary. I'll deal with this assassin and make sure they get what they deserve, Francis I will handle this.

Francis left the throne room and began to walk down the corridor which lead to his and Mary's shared chambers. His mind was filled with racing thoughts as he contemplated what was up with Mary. She was obviously upset or stricken with some kind of mystery illness, but it went to say that he was not going to tell her about the assassination attempt.

Francis was so deep in his thoughts that he had already reached his destination. As he pulled out his hand and slowly reached out for the handle. Just as he was about to pull open the door he stopped for a minute when heard noises coming from their rooms.

 _Is she okay in there?_ Francis wondered as he pulled open the door to reveal his wife hunched over a bucket violently expelling some kind of liquid from her system as two servants were at her side giving her comforting word every so often.

"Leave us please" were the first words that left his mouth after he saw what was before him. His mind was having difficulties processing what was happening. He only knew one thing: his wife was suffering and to watch it would to be the same to him as having a knife repeatedly plunged into his body.

But putting all his confusion aside he ran to his wife and knelt beside her and pulled the hair the hair from hair faced and neatly tucked it behind her ear "Mary, are you ok."

"Francis there's something I need to tell you" was all that Mary could mutter out before she turned to the bucket to continue vomiting.

"What, Mary? Has someone poisoned you?" If she was poisoned the he would bunt down the man responsible for this crime and he would make you that the payed for it.

Mary had to use all the strength she could find for her to be able to lift her face from the bucket and look her husband in the eyes. "It's not that. I-I'm actually-"

"You're what Mary, please tell me what is wrong so I can help to make it right!" Francis exclaimed, he would go to any lengths for Mary. Even if that meant sailing half-way across the world or riding through the Blood Wood alone at night to maybe find something that would relieve her from this suffering. After all, he loved her.

"Pregnant, I'm p-pregnant."

 **Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I'm going to update this story every Saturday from now on, I hope that's okay. Don't forget to leave your thoughts in the review section, as I love to hear tour feedback!**


	3. Surprise!

**Chapter 3 is up! Ok, so I know I said that I would be updating every Saturday but I just couldn't wait. I don't know whether this will become a regular thing now, but only time can tell for sure. I tried to make it a little bit longer than my other ones, the other two chapters had around 1,500 words but this has 2,600. Any way on with the chapter!**

"Pregnant, are you sure?" Francis' voice filled with disbelief how could he not have known. Was he not paying enough attention her? All these questions were racing through his mind and he didn't even know where to start to explain things.

Mary could sense the confusion her husband felt and she couldn't blame him, she just told him that she was carrying his child. "I found out a couple weeks ago, but I wanted to be sure. That's why I've been disappearing to my chambers recently"

"Mary that is… wonderful!" Francis took both of his hands and pulled Mary's face towards his for a long kiss, filled with passion that lasted until they both ran out of breath. When they broke apart Mary rested her forehead against his.

"We need to tell people about this now you realise, especially my mother she'll get really mad if we keep something like this from her." Francis whispered into her ear.

Mary then pulled her face away from his and looked him in the eyes and began to speak. "l'm pretty sure she already knows, considering last time I was pregnant she barged into our room and-"

"Yes, I am very aware of what happened!" Francis interrupted her before she could finish, which amused Mary as she then let out a small giggle but then thoughts of her pervious pregnancy came to her mind.

"Yes, well I don't want much of what happen last time" Mary knew that if she had another miscarriage then she would never be able to forgive herself, the pain of the loss would be just too much.

"Don't think about that Mary" Francis' comforting voice always made her feel better and this was no exception. "The baby will be healthy, and when he or she is born we will love it both with all our hearts and we will raise it to make our countries a better place"

"We'll tell the court to tonight after we tell them about the offer from the English… which reminds me it's time to sign it" Mary sighed heavily, what she was about to do is going to change the fate of nations. She could lose some of her Catholics supporters who want her on the English throne but ultimately it would make her and Francis' child much safer.

"Okay, we'll go sign the edict and then we will go to your mother and tell her the happy news." They both then got up and made their way out of their chambers and toward Francis' study where the meeting was arranged to take place.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Mary and Francis both sat down at the main desk in the room with four English officials facing them as the current ambassador, Nicolas walked towards him. Mary's attention however, was not on Nicolas but instead on the object that was in his hands. The closer it got the more the butterflies in her stomach grew until the grip on her heart was so strong she felt like she could pass out.

"We need you both to sign this treaty, which formally abdicates Queen Mary's claim to the throne of England and then it will be sent to Elizabeth for final approval." Nicolas then put the piece of paper which held such importance in front of them.

Mary did find it a little odd that Francis wasn't as apprehensive as she was, but then again, she couldn't really blame him. The most that would happen concerning him would be the withdraw of French troops from the boarders which was probably a good thing for him.

When it was her turn to sign, she picked up the quill and guided it to where she need to sign. Just before doing it though she hesitated slightly. To anyone watching it would have simply looked like she was reading it but to Mary, to Mary this was so much more.

This would be the defining moment in her reign, the moment that she relinquished her claim on the English throne. She that by doing this she was giving up her Catholic supporters in England and even one in Scotland who wanted her on the throne. But this was the only way to make sure that Elizabeth wouldn't go after their unborn child.

Snapping out of her daze Mary continued to guide her quill down and when it had finally touched she began to write. This was the worst part in her mind, signing the actual document. Although it probably had only taken a few seconds at most for Mary it felt like an hour with each second getting longer than the last.

"Thank you, your majesty, you've made a great sacrifice in the name of peace. Giving up your claim of Elizabeth's throne so you could end the war." Nicolas then grabbed the piece of paper and folded it into a special case designed just for it. It was outlined with rubies and sapphires with both the English and Scottish royal crest upon it.

Mary felt a sigh of relief. In her mind this was the best choice; giving up her claim on a throne she never wanted, ending the boarder wars and at last bringing the French troops home who had fought in her name.

"I guess you'll have to settle for being Queen of two nations, not three" Francis teased as he grabbed Mary's hand in a supporting manner which told her that he was behind her choice 100%.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

The time of day was now turning from mid-afternoon and towards late afternoon, Catherine sat in her chambers dealing with matters of state. Some Protestant's north of Bordeaux had apparently began rioting and had smashed the window of a shop, after it was believed that a group of Catholics had dragged one of their own throw the streets and plummeted him to death with stones.

It was all terribly stress inducing and just as she was about to put it away and deal with something else she heard a faint knocking sound that eventually got louder from the door. With a quick 'enter' the door opened to show her eldest son and his beloved wife.

"Mary, Francis come sit. Now tell me how was the meeting with the English ambassador?" Catherine asked as they both sat down in front of her.

"It went well, actually but Mary and myself came here to tell of some other news that is equally important, possible more so." Francis told her and the look she gave him back was one that said, _'what could be more important?'_

"Well then, enlighten me on this matter will you." Catherine seemed to be polite for now. After all it was her son who gave her power still at court.

Francis gave Mary a confused look which she returned with one of her own, surely Catherine knew right? "I'm shocked you don't already know considering what you did last time."

"Considering last time? Mary, I do not have all day if you're going to tell me something spit it out already"

"Well I guess Mary managed to hide well enough that even you didn't know. Well then I'll tell you, Mary's pregnant."

The moment those words left his mouth a period of silence began. Both Mary and Francis turned their eyes towards the former Queen to try and gauge her reaction.

"Impossible I've had my eye on you for months, even more so when Francis was ill as it was more imperative than ever before to have an heir." The disbelief in her voice letting itself be known.

"Well one of tests must of began to fail, as I've been pregnant for eight weeks I'm about to show."

"No, it's not the test its your chamber maid, Sarah."

"Sarah, what about her?"

"Well you see, I've been asking your maid to inspect your linens and report back to me. She's been telling that everything was normal and there was no need for me to do any tests, oh when I get my hands on her!"

"You won't be doing anything to her mother. I'm sure the poor girl was only looking out for Mary's best interest" Francis interrupted his mother before the situation escalated and they'd have to get a mew chamber maid.

"But-" Catherine tried to say but Francis wasn't having any of it.

"But nothing mother, anyway we were planning on telling the court tonight alongside the news of the English line of succession."

"Well I'm sure that will make quite the evening for the nobles. On the other hand, though it is quite a smart plan, disappoint the noble with the news from England and then make them forget with news that an heir to the throne is on its way."

"Yes well, I'm afraid I must leave it's beginning to get dark and I need the seamstress to work on loosening my gown." Mary then began to get up and not long after she left Francis left as well leaving them all to get prepared for the festivities.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

As the evening drew closer the time for the Harvest Festival was about to begin. Although the party did not officially begin until the King and Queen said it did, many of the noble men were already there catching up with each other and stead fastly getting drunk.

Unlike the noble women however, their clothes were much simpler and only took a few minutes to put on. The women of the court though had to have servants help the dress as not many knew how to tie their own corset and the few who did were with the men.

Olivia and Maria were two such women who were spending more time than usual in their chambers making sure they were ready for the events of the night. As Olivia was having her hair tied up into a braid, she looked over to Maria who was waiting for her.

Maria's dress was a white one that had no corset but instead was kept together by a small belt on her waist. The skirt of her dress had a bunch of different types of patterns adorning it. Her hair was let down and it had snowbells tangled into it.

Olivia's dress on the other hand was a yellow one that did have a corset. Like Maria's dress it had flower patters on it, but unlike hers it was on both the top and the skirt. She also had some yellow silk tied around her waist that flowed down to the bottom of her skirt.

"Ready to go?" Maria asked.

"Yes, let's hope tonight is good for both of us. For you have to find a suitor your farther will approve of if you're not going to going to be the King's mistress and I need to find Nostradamus."

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Mary was sat at her vanity brushing her hair when one of her servants came in with her dress. As she walked into the room she saw the Queen at her dresser she walked over to the bed and placed the dress down.

As she put the dress down she began to walk over to Mary and stopped when she was standing behind her "How would you like you like me to do your hair, your grace?"

"Just a simple bun would do nicely please." For a moment, Mary was confused at the lack of moment from the girl, but she quickly figured it out "Here you I forget I had this" as she quickly handed her the brush.

When she finished doing her hair they then moved on to putting her in her dress. The under dress along with the skirt was put on fairly quickly and with ease. The trouble came however when she began to tie the corset. Mary knew that at some point she had to start to loosen her corsets and eventually stop wearing them, but she didn't expect it to happen so soon.

As she was tying it up she pulled it quite tightly, well it wouldn't be considered tight if she was in her normal state, and she let out a gasp.

"Is it too tight your grace, I can loosen it if you want?"

"Yes, if you don't mind" Mary replied

Before the girl could comply with her request the door opened and Francis walked into their chambers and stopped in full view of the two girls.

"You may leave now" Francis told the servant. The servant did a bow and then left the King and Queen to the privacy of their chambers.

"What do you think you're doing Francis, my corset was not yet tied."

"Yes, well I believe I can help with that" Francis began to slowly walk towards Mary and picked up one of the strings.

"Francis, do you even know how to tie a corset?" Mary asked. What was Francis thinking he probably didn't even know how to tie one.

"I'm pretty good at untying them I thought it about time I learned who to tie one" Francis teased seeing the obvious discomfort on her face from what he was implying.

Without any warning, he started to tie it up, string by string until it was fully done. Every so often asking if she was of any discomfort what so ever.

"I know you said you wanted to learn how to do this but I don't believe you for a second" Mary smiled she always knew when he was lying and it was no different this time.

"It's just… when I heard you gasp whilst the maid was attending to you, I couldn't pull myself away." Francis confessed with a heartfelt smile.

"Well if me gasping makes you dismiss my chamber maid, heaven pray tell what you're going to do to the midwife when I give birth" Mary joked, which they both laughed at. For a while they just stood there in complete bliss enjoying each other's presence. It seemed so rare nowadays for them to be in the same room as each other and not have to talk about politics.

"Now I do believe that we have a party to attend." Francis smiled at her.

"Wait, I have to get something" Mary quickly ran over to her dresser, leaving Francis in a confused state.

"What are you doing?"

"Here we are" Mary then picked up the crown that went with her outfit and carefully placed it onto her head, and walked back over to Francis.

"For what is a Queen without her crown"

"You'll always be my Queen Mary, but just not my Queen you're my partner. And I will forever love you above all else, no matter what we face or who we face we will always be as one." After hearing such heartfelt decoration of love Mary couldn't help but let out a few tears.

"No more tears" Francis told her as he wiped away the few remaining tears from her eyes. "Now are you ready to go to the party now?"

"Yes, quite ready."

I h **ope Francis' and Catherine's reactions to Mary's pregnancy were good enough for you. Although *SPOILER* I do plan on having a chapter devoted fully to Mary and their baby. See you next week.**


	4. The Harvest Festival

**Hey guys! So I planning on having the story updated twice a week and if you want to find out when go and check out my profile page where the information is placed.**

Mary and Francis walked down from their chambers and along the corridor towards where the festival was being held. Although most Harvest Festivals were thrown outside the weather was not on their side this year as ravage thunderstorms raged on outside the castle.

Inside the ball room the nobles were dancing to the sound of classical music which could be heard echoing from all corners of the castle. For tonight was a joyous event, the Harvest Festival. The Harvest Festival was done to celebrate the upcoming harvest and the promise of peace and prosperity as its name suggested.

When the music suddenly ended all the people in the room, nobles and servants alike, turned to see who was so important that the music had to be stopped. And in that moment, their King and Queen appeared through the entrance and began walking towards their thrones. As they walked through the crowd all those who they passed bowed their heads down as a mark of respect to the crown.

Francis was the first to sit down and was quickly followed by Mary, "Dear subject's I am glad to be able to be hear and host this year's Harvest Festival! But that is not all, we have two very important announcements to make"

By now he certainly had the attention of all the people on the room. Many of them were whispering to each other, there were many rumours in castle about the Queen being pregnant but all was simple speculation as nothing had been confirmed.

"As you may have heard my wife, your Queen has given up her claim on the throne of England so that we could bring the troops back from the Scottish boarders. But as well as that we have even greater news, the Queen is pregnant. An heir is on the way!" Francis was close to shouting as he approached the end of his speech.

The crowd then abrupted in to a vicious applaud, this is what all of France has been waiting for ever since their marriage was negotiated when they were children.

Out of the crowd Lord Narcisse appeared before them and introduced himself with a bow. "Majesty, I believe I speak for the entirety of the court when I say that the news of an impending heir on its way alongside the news from England will make France look as powerful as she was before the plague." The nodding of various heads signalling to him that his statement held popularitly.

"Thank you, Narcisse. Your loyaty to the crown will always be appreciated. Now, let us continue on with the music!" The people of the court obliged to their King's request as they began to get themselves into formation.

"Care to dance, my love?"

"Of course, husband." Francis the held out his hand for Mary to hold, which she gladly accepted as the both rose from their seating position. As they walked down to where the dancing was about to take place room was made for them in the middle of the room.

As the music was playing and the couples were dancing Maria was talking to some men about starting a potential courtship with them. As her father was a duke many men wanted to be married to her, which isn't a bad thing when you're desperately trying to find a suitor. As the conversation was progressing a woman approached them and dismissed them.

Before Maria could protest at the women's actions she pulled her to the side and away from praying eyes. "My name is Catherine de Medici, Queen mother of France and if you know what's good for you you'll shut up and listen to me"

"You came here with Olivia D'Amencourt, correct?"

"Y-yes why do you need to find her?"

"It was predicted by my good friend and seer, that Olivia would do something that would end in her death and you can help me stop this by finding her" The shock on Maria's face was evident to the few passers-by.

"It might be too late she left the room to find him about twenty minutes ago, but then again why should I tell you?"

The look on Catherine's face was one of shock. No one ever said no to her, well no one who was alive to tell the tale. However, it did make sense that she would be bold enough to do this, her family was one of the most influential in France. If she did away with her it could cost her sons the throne so instead she played it smart and offered her a deal she couldn't refuse.

"You should help me because if you do I will set you up with a suitor that will please even your farther."

And with that both Catherine and Maria left the room to find her friend before fate could get a hold of her.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

The dance had finished and Francis was off talking to nobles, but as it was an important event many women from powerful families came her in an attempt to seduce the King and rise in station. Part way through he abruptly ended the conversation and left all the girls quite disappointed as he walked over to Mary.

"Want to go for a walk around the castle" Francis asked out of the blue.

Mary had a confused look on her face as she replied to him "I think the guests will notice our absence and any way why walk with me when you've got all those other girls vying for your attention?"

"Well the reasons simple. I love you, not them" Francis smiled as he gently pulled Mary off her seat and began to walk with her.

"I saw how you looked at those girls back in their" Francis said as they walked down the corridor and into the courtyard.

"It's just that, I thought for a moment that you'd maybe take one of them as your mistress for the months that I'm with child. Silly idea, right?"

"You're right, absolutely right" Mary flinched as he said that, could it be true. Could he not love her? "Your right to think it's a silly idea." A wave of relief rushed over Mary as she heard that.

"Mary, I would never leave you. Even if my life depended on it."

"Thank you, Francis really it fills my heart with joy when I think about how you choose to spend your time with me and not those other ladies. May I ask though, why me what's the difference?"

"The difference?" Francis almost began to laugh at her statement. "The difference is those girls are only interested in what I can offer them you, you love me. For me?"

That alone was enough was to give Mary tears of joy, but before she could wipe them away Francis closed the distance between them. They continued to kiss for quite a long time, the world around losing all meaning except for their feelings towards each other.

However, it was not to last as they were soon interrupted by Bash. Francis asked Bash what was the matter with a concerned look on his face, the was because Bash only got involved with serious cases such as the heart murderer.

"I think you should come see for yourself"

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

"You shouldn't have come here Olivia, when I sent you to the new world it was for your safety" Nostradamus exclaimed, it was foolish for her to come back.

"But I had to my love, I could not stand not being in your presence any longer" Olivia pleaded.

As he went to show her the exit Olivia caught wind of what is he was doing and became desperate to keep him. In an attempt to secure her return she did something no one thought her capable of. She ran across the room to where a knife was kept on a nearby table, it was a small and short one typically one you would use during a surgery.

"Olivia put the knife down" The look in her eyes was on that brought with it unpredictability and that could be dangerous in this situation.

"No not until you let me stay! Please I-I'll stay hidden, I'll do anything!" Tears threating to spill from eyes.

"I'm sorry Olivia, truly for what I'm about to do but if it gets you away from here I will take the risk" He then told her lie which was that he didn't love her. It pained him greatly to tell her this but if it saved her than he was more than willing to suffer through the torture.

"Now put the knife down" Nostradamus coaxed her.

Olivia, now having lost all hope of love she became distraught and began to charge towards him. He knew if she were in her right mind she would never try something like this but then again, she wasn't in her right mind. She was heartbroken.

Before she could reach him however, two guards suddenly grabbed her by the arms and began to drag her out of the room. Olivia screamed in protest at their actions, but her screams fell on deaf ears as they continued to drag her towards the dungeons and to her cell.

Moments after their departure both Catherine and Maria burst into the room and looked at their current surroundings. Catherine then turned to her court seer and began asking questions.

"What happened?"

"Olivia, she came here. When I told, her she could not stay she was sent into a tail spin and began to attack me."

"Then what?" Catherine asked.

"The guards. They heard her screams and came in to inspect, when they saw her with a weapon they dragged her away."

Maria let out a gasp in response to this information, why would she do something like this? All Catherine dis in response was to comfort her friend. She said that she would try her best to pardon Olivia and have her set free, but his reply truly shocked them.

"No, this is her fate and we cannot interfere. Her execution will go ahead as planned and we will not stop it."

 **I hope this chapter was to your liking. Anyway, I want to ask you something. I have all the chapter planned out from just after the baby's birth and I wanted to hear some pf your suggestions. Please leave them in the review section or feel free to PM it to me and I will try to reply to you?**


	5. Just us

**As a promised a chapter ago, this is going to be solely focused on Mary, Francis and their baby! However, I do admit that there is a bit of Catherine in it but it was kind of necessary for the story to take place.**

Francis woke up to the sun beaming in his face, the curtains had already been opened. Presume ally one of the servants who can into their chambers in the early morning and late nights. He blinked open his eyes to see a sleeping Mary resting on his chest seeing this scene before him brought a smile to his face.

Before he could do anything, such as getting out of bed or arranging a political meeting he heard a loud banging noise on the door. The noise was so loud that it woke Mary up as she gently lifted herself Francis' chest.

"Mmm. What is it Francis?" Mary asked.

"Nothing Mary, It's just a pager." Francis replied with a reassuring look on his face. Then he turned his attention back to the door and with a quick 'enter' the door opened to reveal an older looking boy walking slightly into the room before stop.

As he walked into the room he saw the King and Queen trying to cover themselves up with the blanket they had. Obviously not prepared for such a sight, his faced blushed bright red and he turned his head in a downward direction until he was looking at the floor.

"T-The Queen Mother, uh, she wants to see you your majesty" The boy nervously said. Both Mary and Francis decided to make things easier for the boy and quickly dismissed him.

"Well, I guess we need to get ready. If my mother is requesting my presence, no doubt she won't appreciate me being late" Francis told Mary as he was about to lift the covers so he could get out of the bed. A hand reached and held on his.

"You don't have to leave the bed right now, you know. I'm sure Catherine won't mind if you're say 10 or so minutes late"

Francis immediately picked up on her intentions and compiled with them without a second thought. They spent the rest of the morning on a passionate embrace before leaving the bed and getting ready for the day.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

"Francis, darling what's the meaning of this?" Catherine asked her eldest son and by the tone in her voice she was greatly confused as was Mary.

"Meaning of what?" Mary asked, hoping to get some sort of clarification on what was happening.

"Why have you had your bags packed? You need to tell me when you leave." Catherine scolded.

"Mother about that" Francis started "I have planned a trip for me and Mary. We are going to go to Paris as we never had the chance to go last time."

A smile grew on Mary's face as she heard Francis speak. Paris. She had always wanted to go but it was too dangerous right after her husband's miracle recovery as he could've relapsed into bad health at any time.

"And, I would have no other stand in as regent than you." Catherine was almost instantly put into a good mood. She had been trying to prove herself to Francis in hope that he would trust her, ever since she fled to England.

"Well mother, we should really be going" Francis told his mother as he grabbed a hold of Mary's hand and lead her out of the room.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Mary was led by Francis to the courtyard and to where the portcullis was located as well as their carriage. Every step closer to the carriage filled her with more excitement, a whole week of just Francis. No politics or urgent meeting that must have their attention, well the only thing of political interest they would have to do is talk to some of the powerful people who reside in the Louvre palace.

Francis was the first to get in and once he was he moved to the other side and extended his hand to his wife. Mary gladly accepted the offer and uses it to pull herself into the carriage and to sit herself right next to Francis.

It had almost been an hour since their departure and all the way through it Mary had been resting her head on Francis' shoulders as they both looked out of the carriage window and on to the passing countryside. Francis immediately noticed when Mary lifted her head and has the look in her that he knew all too well these past couple of weeks, _morning sickness_.

"Are you alright, Mary?" he asked.

"I'm fine it's just a bit of morning sickness, it'll pass soon." Mary replied as she pulled herself back together.

"But it's something I will gladly go through many times for the end result." Mary said as she looked down and held her stomach. Mary was two months pregnant and her belly was becoming too large for her corsets, which she had stopped wearing a few days ago.

"I've been quite excited for this day for a long time, do you remember when we first made love and I told you I hoped you were with child?"

"Yes, I do"

"Well ever since then I knew that one day we would have one, well except for that period of time when you thought marring me was going to kill me."

Mary felt the guilt eat at as she remembered back to before she was married. She felt bad for Francis who she had taken everything from him and she also felt bad for Bash who she had lead on and then forced to watch her and his brother's consummation.

"I know and I'm sorry"

"It's okay, Mary I know you were doing it for me. Now let's change the subject, what are we going to call the baby?"

Mary and Francis both looked at their baby deep in thought about what they could name him/her when it is born.

"Anne." Francis suddenly said out of blue.

"Anne? That's a girl's name Francis"

"And?"

"It's more important to have a boy and you know it."

"Well it may be to the rest of the world but to me" Francis then picked up Marys hands and placed them on his lap. "to me, a girl is just as important as a boy"

Mary was about to open her mouth in an attempt to reply to what he said when the carriage came to a gradual stop. The lack of movement caused them to both look out to the door that was pulled open to show them the driver.

"Your majesties, I am pleased to inform you that we have arrived at the palace"

"Of course, thank you" Mary said as she stepped out of the carriage and waited for Francis to step out as well.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

As their bags were being unloaded from the carriage Mary and Francis were exploring the palace and were trying to find the bed chambers. They soon found out were they were after asking one of the guards who then directed them to them.

"Wow it's so beautiful" Mary was in absolute awe at the sight of the room.

"Trust me when I say this, you're not really going to notice the room." a grin quickly grew on his face as he said this.

"What are you saying Francis?" Mary probably knew deep down what he meant but chose to ignore it for the moment.

Francis the moved closer to her until he was almost one with her. He then moved her chin so that he would look at him and then he guided her lips towards his. They continued be locked in a loving embrace for a few moments before they began edging towards the bed.

 _One hour later._

After they got redressed they began walking through the vast garden the palace had to offer. As they came to an area by the lake Mary noticed that an area had been set up for a picnic of some sort. Since the palace had been reserved for the royal couple no one other than those living there could be with them.

"Here we are" Francis smiled as he continued to walk with her to the blanket. When they got there, he sat down and beckoned her to sit with him. "Do you remember when I said I wanted to eat the oranges from Nice?"

Mary nodded her head as she recalled the conversation they had, it had pained her deeply to see her husband lying on that bed in such a bad condition it made her wonder if she'd ever see him healthy again.

"Here, have one" Francis the picked up on of the oranges and handed it to her. Mary gladly took the orange and bit lightly into it.

"It's delicious." Savouring the taste from the orange. The fruit from Nice was some of the best in the world with it being exported to counties such as Spain and Italy.

"You should eat some more, my mother always told me that fruit helps the baby grow up strong" Francis told his wife as he took his own bite out of the fruit.

"It's getting dark Francis, I think we should head back and get ready for the feast that's being held in our honour."

"I suppose we should" Francis then stood and held out a hand for Mary to help pull herself up. They then started to walk back to the palace to get ready for tonight.

Not many could say they hosted a dinner for the King and Queen and the owners of the palace, the mayor of Paris was certainly not expecting to be one of the lucky few. It was a great advantage for two reasons: 1) you could influence them and gain more power. 2) The hosts of the party would gain much more respect and would bring him more visitors.

The rest of the night was a complete blur to Mary and Francis as they were totally locked in each other's gaze. They only thing she could vaguely remember was dancing under the stars together, knowing that everything they had been fighting for had been worth it.

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter. This took quite a while to write but I wanted to compensate for my lack of Fray in the last chapter. Anyways I want to say thank you to the Queen of Fray for your suggestion. I will defiantly try to put it in after the baby's birth.**


	6. Returning to the castle

**Hey guys and here is Chapter 6. I just wanted to say that I'm really sorry about not updating last Wednesday, I was really busy with school. Anyway on with the chapter.**

The sun was beginning to rise as Francis and Mary began to make the journey back from Paris and to castle. Mary was packing her final bags with the help of a few servants just as Francis walked in. He then quickly dismissed the servants before walking over to his beloved wife.

"Mary, you should not overexert yourself. It's not healthy for the baby." Francis picked up the clothes from her hands and put down on the bed next to them.

"Francis, I am only two months pregnant. I should think myself able to do simple things like this" Mary let out a little laugh.

The two of them had this conversation many time over the course of this past week, and she'd presumed they would have it many more times throughout the upcoming months. She knew he worried about her and their child safety, but at the same time it annoyed her to no end the limitations he put on her. The no running, corsets and not being alone without guards to monitor her actions. Of course, she agreed with most of the terms but she didn't like being reminded of them every time she wished to do something.

"Well it would seem we have no more to debate this matter." Francis told her as a servant came to inform them that the carriage was ready for their departure. As they went to leave Mary let out a heavy sigh that Francis could not have helped but noticed.

"Mary, are you ok?" Francis asked.

"Yes. I just would farther stay here than go back to the castle. Its seems so peaceful here, so surreal not like it is back at court." Mary, once again let out a heavy sigh as she looked around the room. They had made such beautiful memories within the walls of the palace and it would be a great shame for her to just leave them behind.

"I know you hate the way the court works, but sometimes we have to do things we hate. For the sake of the crown." Francis told her as he grabbed a hold of her hand and looked her in the eyes. Francis always knew what to say or do to make her feel better in Mary's opinion.

"Ok. Let's go" Mary muttered after a brief moment of silence that she swore could've lasted hours at the very least.

With that said the two of them made their way out of the palace and to the where their carriage was waiting for them. It would be a long journey home, so they had decided to set off just before dawn so they would arrive at early midday.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

All around the castle noblemen and dignitaries were gathering around the courtyard to officially welcome back the King and Queen from their short journey to Paris. To them all they knew about their trip is that it was one of a diplomatic nature, that some urgent matters had come up that required both of them in person.

Outside where the people were waiting for their arrival the usual rumours were being spread, and friends were catching up with their old friends. But all were waiting for the same thing.

Up at the front of the crowd was the former Queen of France, who was the first in line for the welcoming reception amongst the important members of the privy council.

Soon enough though, a guard came riding through the gate shouting the words 'make way for their majesties!' and to which the carriage soon followed as it came moving to a gentle stop. The first to get out was Francis who then turned to extend a hand for his wife, which she gladly accepted.

As they walked towards the entrance way of the castle they were intercepted by Catherine who suddenly appeared before them.

"Francis, Mary! It is absolutely wonderful to see you safely returned from your trip to Paris." Catherine exclaimed as she hugged first Francis and then Mary.

"It's good to see you as well mother, I trust that all was well during our absence" Francis asked.

"Yes, everything is fine. But I want you to know that before you get too comfortable there will a family lunch held in just one hour that we will all be attendance. I trust to see you both there." Catherine asked.

"Yes, we will most defiantly make sure to be there, when will it begin?" Mary asked.

"Half an hour is when the feast will start, now we should all be getting ready so I will see you later." And, with that, the crowd slowly started to dissipate. With the nobles returning to whatever work they had left undone.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

The time flew by and before they knew it was time for the family lunch Catherine had set up. As they walked into the room they saw everyone standing behind their seats waiting for them. Then they took their place at the head of the table and sat down. Everyone else sitting down moments later.

As they were eating Narcisse started a conversation that was of particular interest to Mary and Francis.

"I thought your majesties would like to know, that a marriage proposal for your unborn son."

"Already, I would've thought that the potential suitors could have at least waited for our child to be born. And who is she anyway" Mary said in bewilderment. It had only been a couple months and people were already putting forward potential brides and husbands.

"The girl is from a powerful family in Spain. It would be wise to agree to this match; her dowry is quite a large sum, large enough to resolve France from her military debts" Narcisse then moved to look at Mary, who in turn gave him one back. "Debts caused by the Scottish wars."

"Narcisse how are we to consider such a match?" Francis intervened the two of them "When we are yet to know the sex of the child? We are going to pit off all discussions of marriage until the babe is born." And with that the two of them stopped what they were doing and returned to eating.

"Speaking of marriage, can we talk about mine?" The sudden question Claude gave them confused them all, who were left speechless until Bash spoke up.

"You want to get married" He scoffed, Claude had never entertained the idea of marriage so her sudden change in behaviour made all their heads turn.

"Yes, to Leith. He has risen high enough in station to become eligible."

"Fine, I give you my blessing as King to marry him but you must do so quickly. Before anyone can interject."

Francis didn't even time to properly finish his sentence before Claude ran up to Francis to hug him and then began to run off to go and tell her now fiancé of their upcoming wedding.

The from then onward was just simple conversations about the politics of France and what to do about it, with topics such as the English line of succession and the alarming growth rate of Protestant violence with in the borders coming up.

In fact, everything seemed to be normal until Mary stood up abruptly. Everyone immediately turned to see why she would do such a thing.

"Mary, are you ok?" Francis asked but Mary gave him no reply. As Francis was looking at her he saw that her face looked more pale than usual and her arms were struggling to support her body weight as she was using them to lean against the table.

Just as Francis was about to go to her she fainted and then collapsed on to the floor, almost instantly both Catherine and Francis were on the floor besides her. Both of them were greatly confused as to what could have caused such a thing. All they knew is that both Mary and their child could be at risk of death. And that was something that greatly frightened Francis to no end.

 **Sorry if this chapter seemed to be a bit on the short side, hopefully with it being May Day Bank Holiday I will have time to write more. See you on Wenesday!**


	7. Losing hope

**Hey guys, here the next chapter! All I have to say is I hope you don't hate me after this.**

It had almost been four full hours since Mary had collapsed. She had been rushed to her chambers so that the physician could perform his work with more ease, but none of that mattered to Francis. Not when Mary was gravely ill and he couldn't even see her.

Whilst the physician was tending to Mary, Francis was trying to distract himself by going to meeting upon meetings to try and drown out the feeling of dread he had growing in his stomach. As the time went by the day slowly turned into a blur with and he only had one more meeting left.

As he sat down at his desk he heard the door knock and the English ambassador, Nicolas, walked in and sat in front of him. From what Francis could see the man in question had a piece of paper that he quietly placed onto the table.

"So, Nicolas what have you come to here to talk to me about"

"Well your majesty, I must confess I was hoping to talk to Queen Mary"

"Unfortunately, the Queen is currently indisposed, but I will convey any message you tell me to her once the meeting is over" Francis lied, well it did have some truth in its nature Mary was indisposed. But he could not tell him the reason why as he could've easily gone back to England and tell Elizabeth to stage an invasion in Scotland whilst Mary is unable to do anything.

"Then let us begin, shall we?"

The two of them began talking about the treaty and what was going to happen, such as the French and English soldiers being pulled from the Scottish boarders. And, the back lash that they both have faced since the terms of the treaty had taken place.

Countries such as Spain and Italy were steadfastly against it as it meant they couldn't turn England Catholic by putting Mary on Elizabeth throne. The Catholics living in England who also want Mary on their throne could revolt at any minute leaving England fractured and weak.

But soon the conversation took an interesting turn when the ambassador began talking about a subject that even he couldn't help but be curious about, the line of succession. It had been a question many been asking that if Mary would not be the next Queen then who would take the crown. Some assumed it would be Henry Stuart, the closest Englishman with a blood connection to the throne.

"Your majesty I would like to inform that Elizabeth has made a choice on an heir"

"An heir, who is it?" Francis asked.

"The heir will the child inside her majesty's belly" before Francis could even process what had been said he continued on. "Elizabeth would only ask this from you: that you make no announcement of this development to anyone."

"We be happy to comply with these conditions if that is what your Queen wants. Now if there is anything else I believe we are finished"

With a quick nod of the head Nicolas got up from his chair and left the room after giving him a bow. Not long after his departure Francis himself was preparing to leave, he knew that Mary would love to hear the news. That is if she was awake. _If._ That was a word that frightened him.

It also made him feel angry that his wife, the woman he was bound to until his death could be facing death herself and he wasn't allowed to see her. He knew deep down that he reasons they gave was a valid one. His mother had told she needed to be kept away from any source of stress that she may normally be exposed to.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

As he approached their shared chambers he saw the physician exiting the room, slowly closing door behind him as he turned to face the King. He waited for a few moments before bowing and slowly walking towards him.

"How is she?" Francis asked.

"Not well your majesty. The poison has worked its way deep into her system and it has left her very weak." Francis could feel himself tighten up as the words came out of his mouth.

"What else?"

"I do not want to imply anything, but it likely that the child will not survive this"

This was what brought Francis over the edge. Their child, who had not yet been brought into the world and had barley been in his mother's womb for two months, was already fighting for their life. This made him more determined than ever to find whoever did this and make them pay.

"You may leave now" Francis told him as he began walking off with an ever-growing pace as he knew that the King was in an unstable move.

It took Francis a few minutes to gather his strength before he opened the door widely to reveal Mary laying on her bed with the blanket pulled up to her stomach. The skin on her face seemed to grow ever paler, and there was small layer of sweat covering her forehead.

Almost immediately, Francis rushed to the bed and sat down on the pillows beside her. Francis slowly reached put the place his hands in hers, getting more hesitant as he got closer. Almost afraid that if he were to touch her she would break, like a mirror would when dropped.

The other hand rested on her cheek before running it down the side of her dress before leaving it on top of her swollen belly. Now that he was able to be alone with her he was able to notice more of her features. One of them was the dress she was wearing. It was still regal enough for a Queen but mainly consisted of a loose white robe, with a grey over coat that was heavily embraided with different types of patterns on it.

As he was looking at her he felt her begin to stir quietly, but as much as he would've loved to hear her voice he knew that she needed rest. Almost as much as he needed to sleep so he began to lull her back to sleep and then withdrew himself from her embrace.

As he got up to leave he glanced back to Mary before whispering to himself. _'Please be okay, Mary'._

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

It was now morning and Francis had been sleeping in his old chambers so that Mary would be able to rest. He just wished he was able to rest as well, but unfortunately for him all he could think about was the dire situation that his beloved wife was in.

As he laid there in the bed thinking about what was to become of him and his family, he heard a swift knock on the door before the pager boy entered.

"Your mother has told me to tell you that you brother has arrived at the castle"

Francis soon remembered that with all that with all that was going on, such as stabilizing France after the return of the troops, that they had completely forgotten about Charles. Besides the boy had been away from his family for so long that it would've seemed cruel not to let him come home.

Moments after he left Francis got changed out of his sleeping clothes and into a more appropriate set of clothes for the court to see. He then began walking towards the door and out into the throne room where he would be there to greet him.

As he was walking down the corridor and past his and Mary's chambers he saw Kenna slowly close the door and begin to turn towards him. When she saw him, she started to walk towards him before stopping in front of him.

"I'm guessing you what to know how Mary's doing, don't you?" she asked.

"Yes, I do"

Kenna sighed before moving her gaze to the floor. "Well I am glad to say she has gotten better" Francis then let out a sigh of relief at the possibility of Mary's recovery happening sooner than the physician had anticipated.

"And our child, what news do you have about its health?"

Kenna then rose her face to look Francis in the eyes, but as she looked at him her eyes began to water which made Francis fear for the worst.

"Last night Mary was experiencing some bleeding and it is not yet sure whether or not it will survive".

Francis could barely hear what she was saying by the time she had reached the end of her sentence, not when he had just been told that his child may or may not be dead. But as much pain and sadness he felt he knew it would be nothing in comparison to how Mary would be feeling. When they had their first miscarriage it tore Mary to pieces. More so then it should have done, but considering that only an hour before she had been forced to endure the Christening of her husband's son.

He thought it only right that he should go onto the room and help comfort her just in case the worse had come to pass and what he feared had come true. But as he made his move Kenna moved her arm in a manner that told Francis not to go in there.

"She has been in so much pain, and she has just manged to sleep."

"Fine but I'll be back later. Make sure to tell Mary that I will be visiting her at 7 o'clock to have a private dinner in our chambers."

"Yes, I'll make to tell her when I check up on her in the next hour or so"

"Thank you" were the last words that were exchanged between them before the parted ways. All Francis could think about as he was walking was the news that Kenna had told him. But before he knew it he was already walking up the stairs that lead up to his throne.

Only minutes had passed when the guards announced the arrival of the Dauphin and the Queen Mother. When they both came in to the room Charles walked right up to the throne and did a little bow before looking at Francis with a smile on his face.

It was a smile that was also visible on Francis' face as he lifted himself up from his seating position and walked towards him with open arms. To which he returned with an equal amount energy.

"Welcome home brother"

 **Hoped you enjoyed this chapter! I just wanted to inform that I won't be able to update on Wednesdays anymore as my school schedule is getting pretty crazy. Any way see you next week!**


	8. Life goes on

**Here is chapter 8! Sorry about posting late, again. I will try and get back into my regular schedule. But anyways, enjoy.**

Mary was beginning to wake up slowly from her long sleep. The only thing Mary could say she accurately remembered was the lunch she had hours ago. She barely remembered one of her ladies, Kenna, coming in to her chambers briefly to check up on her.

As she laid there on her bed, she felt a pain rise in her head and lower back, to which she assumed was caused from the fall she suffered. The pain was a sharp and stinging, the type of pain one would get after accidently walking into a table that corners dug deep into your ribs.

Finally opening her eyes to look at her surroundings better. Mary waited for the pain to dull enough for her move, or at least enough to allow her some moment of peace. The time came soon enough for her as it only took a few minutes for her to regain the feeling in her back and for the pain in her head to fade to point where she could once again hear her thoughts.

Quietly moving one of her arms to the side of her ribs, Mary used it to prop herself up so she could sit up and face herself towards the window. From what she could tell the door to the balcony was left open to let some air in the room.

As she was gazing out of the balcony she could see that the sun was already half below the mountains that surrounded it on both sides, this was one of Mary's favourite things do. She remembered being a child and sneaking out into the gardens with Francis to watch the sun set. It was something that was still fond in her mind because those days seemed so far away now.

Sure, she had been Queen of Scotland back then and Francis the heir to the French throne, but they were still children and so their peers had taken a hold of all their power leaving them to be _just_ Mary and _just_ Francis.

Mary was suddenly snapped out of her daze and brought back to reality when she felt something underneath her hands. It was hard and rough, nothing like the soft linens that normally adorned her bed. When she looked down to see to find out what it was she was greeted with a sight that made her stomach turn.

It was a patch of dried blood. It was also then that she realised that she was in different dress than she was in previously. Mary then began to look around the room to see of her other dress was still in the room, go which the answer was yes. As she locked her gaze on to a dress that was hunched over a bucket, ready for a laundry servant to come and take it.

But the thing that striked her the most was the familiar colour of deep red that was dotted on the area below where the corset would sit. The sight of this made her look back down to the blood on her sheets before looking back at the dress. Immediately, the worst came to mind as she realised what could have happened to her in the hours that were lost to her memory.

"No, it can't be." Mary could barely have muttered before tears threatened to spill from eyes. If what she thought had happened had actually come to pass she couldn't bear even breathing, knowing that she had failed Francis a second time.

"Excuse me your grace, is there anything you require?" A servant girl asked. Mary must have been so deep in thought that she didn't even hear her open the door or enter.

"No. No, there isn't"

"Okay your grace" the girl paused for a few moments, almost as if she needed to remember what she was going to say "The lady Kenna also wanted me to inform you that the King will be coming to your chamber for a late night dinner at 7 o'clock."

Great, this was the last thing she needed or wanted. Mary didn't know how she was going to face Francis. He always was able to tell whether or not she was lying and the love in his eyes, that always shone so brightly, would have completely broken through any defences she may have put up.

Just as the girl was about to pull open the door to leave the Queen to wallow in her own thoughts a voice spoke up from behind her.

"Actually, there is something I do require" the girl turned her head back in a questioning manner but was still ready to carry out the Queen's orders to the best of her abilities.

"Yes, your grace. What is it that you require?"

"Can you send in a midwife, and make sure to tell her to come immediately. I want her visit to be over before the King's return."

"Yes, I'll make sure to get her quickly"

And with that, the girl bowed before silently leaving the room. Leaving Mary alone to stare at the blood stain besides her hand and with each passing moment she was more confused about what was to become of her child.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Francis was the first to pull himself away from his embrace with his brother. Francis then looked around the room until he saw the women he was looking for, his mother. As he looked over to her he could almost see a softness in the way she was holding herself. Francis assumed that it was because she had not seen her son in so long.

But it was a softness that was quickly over as she returned to her normal stare of dominance that showed the court that she was the great Catherine de Medici and she was still a powerhouse here in French court.

As her normal demeanour returned, she looked up to make eye contact with her eldest son. She knew that he meant he needed her over to where he was. It wasn't a surprise to her that Francis still needed her direction from time to time. He was still revering from his illness and was currently going the heartbreak from the possible death of his child.

"Hello, my children" Catherine's said as she approached the two of them. "Ah, Charles. My have you grown!"

"Yes, well I have my mother to thank for providing me with such great homes to stay at"

"You must tell me of how your journey back to court was"

Francis, Catherine and Charles then preceded to leave the throne room and then begin to walk down the neighbouring corridor. They were mainly talking about Charles; his recent travels to Spain and the lessons he had been being taught.

They quickly came to a stop when two lord approached them. They were both young men, around 18 and were a similar stature to the prince. As they got to them they stopped before removing their hats and bowing.

The first of the men, who had black ragged hair that adorned his head along with a golden-brown coat that showed of his status as one of the riches nobles in the country. "Charles there you are! We've been looking for you."

The two men suddenly dropped their formal demeanour, in exchange for a more casual, friend-like one. Catherine and Francis both looked at each other with a worried look as they watched Charles walk over to them and greet them like they were life time friends.

"Francis, who is that boy?" Catherine hissed. She didn't like those boys and the influence they had on him. Even though he may only be Dauphin for a few more months before a new heir was produced, he was still able to make nation changing decisions.

"He and his companion were living in the estate in Spain that Charles was spending time out, during his appearance at Spanish court. They've been staying with him ever since"

Like Catherine, Francis was not happy to see them here. Ever since Charles became sixteen, he would go out drinking to no end and was ditching his tutors he was is in no shape ready for the responsibilities that faced him.

Charles then began to wonder off claiming that he need to catch up with his friends, and Francis and Catherine were left to bicker about what to do with the prince and his friends. But Francis soon told his mother that he would have to leave if he wanted his dinner with Mary to be done in time. Catherine muttered something about a 'get well' but Francis couldn't tell as he started to walk off to the kitchen to place his order.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Bash was sitting shirtless at his vanity, which was a smaller one that paled when compared to that of his wife's. Kenna always had a thing for buying the most extravagant things to bolster her reputation as a member of the royal family.

Focusing intensely on shaving the side of his face when he heard the doors slowly begin to open and a figure appeared from the shadows and approached him from behind. Bash could only recognise this woman as his loving wife, Kenna.

"You're focusing too hard. What's wrong?" Kenna frowned.

"Francis asked me to lead an investigation to find out who poisoned Mary."

"Do you have any leads on who could've done this" Kenna asked as she walked even closer to sit beside him.

"All we know is that he fled to Lyon, we've sent a group of men to the town to find him." As he finished his sentence he looked up to his wife deep in thought.

"What is it?"

"I just remembered something someone said to me earlier"

"What did they say?" Bash asked as he rose from his seat to stand next to her.

"A woman ran into me looking distraught, when I asked her what was wrong she told me that her husband had been acting strange recently. Then a few hours ago he claimed he had an emergency in Lyon and left immediately."

"He could've had a part in it." Bash then moved to put his coat and boots on "Which means she might know something, do you know where should be now?"

"Probably in the Great Hall dancing with the other ladies"

Bash then said a quick goodbye and left to go find the woman in question.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

Francis was walking towards his and Mary's chambers for their late-night dinner. As he approached his destination all he could think about was Mary and whether she was okay. He wasn't even sure if she was sleeping or not, but he just had to see her.

When he reached the door to pull it open it took him a few moments before he could find himself able to pull it open. Francis felt a worrying pain grow in his stomach as he looked at the bed to find that was empty. Francis then began to look around the room to see where she was, until he locked on to her body, that was standing on the edge of the balcony.

"Mary?" Francis asked. Mary quickly turned to face him, and from what he could see she had been crying for some time.

"Mary, what's wrong? Please. Tell me" Francis moved towards her. Once he was stood beside her he reached out to touch her hand but failed as she pulled herself away.

"The b-baby"

"What about it, is it okay Mary?"

"It lives." These were the only words that Francis could hear before he pulled Mary in to hug. The two of them then spent the rest of the evening together thanking God for their blessings and eating the dinner Francis had ready for them. To which afterwards they went to sleep.

 **I just wanted to say sorry again for posting this chapter late, I was out all day yesterday and completely forgot to post the chapter. See you next Saturday!**


	9. Investigation part 1

**Chapter 9 is here! Sorry for the late update and the shortness of the chapter. I have end of year exams all next week so I have been using all my free time revising.**

A few weeks had passed since Mary had told Francis that both she and their child will live, and since then she has been seen to by a midwife at least twice a day. She couldn't really argue with Francis on that point it was important, not only to him but to her as well. From what she was told the poison had tightened her womb making childbirth a more difficult task.

The worst side effect of this all in her opinion was the vulnerability it showed her. Mary never realised how dangerous the castle could be when you're not prepared, and she had been too caught up in the miraculous second chance she and Francis had been given that the politics took to far of a back seat in her life.

As it was now Mary was currently relaxing with Lola and her son in the gardens. They were both sat on a grand blanket that was large enough to hold a makeshift cradle and a supply of food large enough for the two of them.

Mary was sat there eating a few grapes as she watched her friend coddle her son. John was fastly approaching his first birthday and even though Mary was happy for the boy she couldn't help but feel a pang of jealously arise inside of her. She knew it to be silly as she had long moved past those feelings.

It was probably just her anticipation to be a mother like her, but then again it did sadden her to know that her first born would not be Francis' first born.

"Mary? Mary?"

Snapping out her daze Mary looked up to see Lola looking at her with concern in her eyes. Mary must have been out of touch long enough for her to notice.

"What is it Lola?"

"I was asking how you've been, we haven't talked in weeks"

"Yes, well in-between the trip to Paris and the attempt on my life have not been allowed to so much as step out of my bedchambers. It is a miracle I am able to be with you now." Mary let out an exhausted laugh as she placed the grapes back on the blanket.

"I know that Francis has doubled your guard" Lola said as she pointed to two men in the distance.

"Well I can't really blame him, after all that's happened"

"Enough talk of that, I've heard a new baby room is being built" Lola said as she took a sip from her wine.

"It's meant to be completed today but I haven't been able to look at it. Both Francis and Catherine have insisted on it."

"I imagine that you haven't had any sleep over these past weeks with the nursery being connected to your bedchambers"

The two girls continued to talk pleasant conversation with each other, every now ant hen taking a grape from the bowl or taking a sip from their goblet of wine. As time passed it began to get less bright outside as the morning came to a close.

The two were however, interrupted when they heard a pair of footsteps approach them. Turning her head Mary saw that it was her husband who was walking towards them.

"Lola, Mary. If you don't mind I need to spend some time with my wife." Francis told them both as he lifted Mary from her seating position to a standing one. Lola too got up as she claimed it was time to put John down for his afternoon nap, once they had finished their goodbyes the couple made their way back inside the castle.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Bash was walking through the walls of the castle hoping to find the woman who might have ties to the attempt on Mary's life. He was using the description of what she looked like from Kenna. She had long brown hair and had a taste for embroidery.

Soon enough a woman of that description came into his view as he saw a young girl, aged only 19, sitting on one of the benches. From what he could see she was reading a book but it was something else about her that struck him, he knew this woman.

Well not enough for him to be able to talk to her without introducing himself but he had defiantly seen her somewhere, perhaps she was new since the type of dress she wore was very high in Spanish fashion.

Bash decided to go up to her and begin talking to her, as he got closer it was almost as if she could feel his presence as he looked to make direct eye contact.

"Good afternoon, sir" The girl quietly said as she closed her book and put to one side. "What can I do for you?"

"I need to talk to you on a matter most urgent." Bash the signalled for them to begin walking to a place more private, where they would not have to worry about prying eyes or gossiping girls. They stopped walking when they reached the servants wing of the castle. At this time of day, it would be almost empty as they would be delivering lunch to all the nobles.

"What could be so important that it would involve me?"

"I have been told that your husband has disappeared, did anything happen before?"

"For the past month or so before his disappearance he had been acting a bit out of the sorts. He always seemed to have something on his mind that was troubleing, but every time I asked he would always dismiss it."

"Do you know why he left?" Bash enquired.

"All I know is that he had been receiving letters form a person unknown to me. When he left I was cleaning his desk when I saw it opened, I became curious so I looked inside. Most of what was said I did not know. The only thing I can recall is at the bottom it said, 'I now call upon the favour you owe me'."

"What did you do with the letter afterwards?"

The lady seemed almost a different person by this point. Bash assumed it was because she thought she was going to be condemned for something her husband might have done.

"Afterwards I put the letter back down."

"Were there anymore letters?"

"If there are then they'll probably be in his bottom left desk draw. But before I go may I ask why are you interested in all this?"

"We think your husband might have tried to poison the Queen."

"No." the girl said as horror struck her "I swear to you sir I have had no part in this! Nor have my children please show mercy!"

"It's okay, no harm will come to you or your children as long as you help us find your husband" Bash said as he tried to calm the girl. Once she was okay she promised she would not tell anyone of their conversation and the two parted ways.

 **I know this chapter was short compared to my others but I just wanted to get it out as soon as possible. I promise next week's chapter will be longer.**


	10. The investigation part 2

**Sorry for the long wait but here is the chapter. I read over the reviews for the last chapter and I have tried to make this chapter both longer and filled more Fray. Hope you enjoy the chapter!**

Bash was walking out of the servants now that was nearing dinner time, and as he getting closer to the exit more servants of all ages were passing him. Each one giving him a shocked look, it was very rare for them to see a noble man in what was widely considered 'their domain'.

Ignoring the looks being shot his way Bash recalled what the woman said to him about the letters. If he could find them then they could be well on the way to finding the man responsible for this crime, and from the reaction the lady gave him Bash could make the assumption that her husband wasn't a part of the plan or that he was and never told her.

But perhaps the most interesting fact of all was where his room was located. Before they had went their separate ways, she had told him that her name was Isabella and that her husband was a minor noble near Dover, not powerful to own the castle but the surrounding villages were all under his control.

That was suspicious on its own as Dover was known across Europe as the gateway to England, so it would make sense that would be the were the criminals departed England. Bash thoughts were soon interrupted when he reached the door that he was looking for, slowly opening it he saw the room.

It was dimly lit due to the dark look of the furniture of the room. There was a large double bed on the left side of the room and a desk perched near the window. The whole right side of the room was filled with toys for children. After looking around the room Bash's eyes went straight back to the desk, Isabella had said that she spotted the letter on the desk so that was where it or others like it may reside.

As he reached the desk he noted that the letter Isabella was talking about was no longer there, quickly moving on Bash opened the top left draw. Inside was a collection of mix-match objects such as quills and unused candles but soon enough he found a piece of folded parchment. Carefully lifting it out of the draw the first thing Bash could see was that the seal was one of a Catholic.

Since the Protestant faith came to light they had decided to change their seals so that the normal Latin phrase would be redone in their language. Making sure not to break the seal Bash was able to open the letter and get a better look at its contents.

Inside the letter said that there would be someone waiting for him said that there would be a man waiting for him in Lyon to take him back to England. The part of the letter that caused the most interest was the bit at the bottom. _'We must make sure that this operation is carries out without so much as a whisper. Not even the Queen of England can know'_

It would make sense for this assassination attempt to have no ties to Elizabeth, since the signing of the treaty between England and Scotland Mary is no longer a threat. Besides she had already named Mary's child as the heir and to kill the heir to the throne would be treason. But, it could be possible that this could've been set in motion before Mary signed it

"There was a period of time where it seemed like Mary wasn't going to give up her claim to her cousins' throne, maybe Elizabeth was frightened Mary was raising an army to take it by force" Bash whispered to himself. Just at that moment Bash hear the door open, quickly putting the letter back in the draw Bash turned around saw that it was only a servant coming in to change the linens.

"My lord, what are you doing here?"

"Nothing. I was just checking to see if the room was okay. Lady Isabella was very worried about it."

The girl then moved towards the bed to take the old sheets off and put the new one on "My Lady has nothing to fear this room is one of the best kept with it being so close to the servant's wing.

"Well I must be off" Bash said as he left the room, leaving the girl to her cleaning once more.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Mary and Francis were walking through the gardens hand in hand as the sky reached mid-afternoon, it was a pleasant day outside it neither to warm nor too cold and the wind had a certain ease about it. Seeing that it was a good day Mary wanted to go out and enjoy it but Francis had been weary since the palace gardens had one of the most direct ways to the village.

In the end, they had come up with a compromise, they could go outside only if there were at least two or three guards behind them at any given point.

"It's such a lovey day today, isn't it?" Mary asked as she turned to face her husband.

"It is, but are you sure you should be walking so much?"

"The midwife said that being in the fresh air will be good for both me and the baby." Mary argued.

"Yes, but she also said to not over exert yourself"

"I'm not!" Mary said in accusing tone as she stood still "Quite the opposite actually I've been cooped up inside the castle for too long"

"Here's an idea we can stay in the gardens if you come and sit with me" Francis said as he leaned in closer to her.

"Deal" Mary then closed gap between them and the two of them shared a kiss that only lasted a few seconds.

After the two separated the moved to walk towards a stone slab that was carved into the shape of a bench. Rested upon it were many pillows that were designed to make it more comfortable for those who may sit upon it. Francis was the first down, quietly pulling some pillows next to him for Mary to sit on. Pulling out an arm for her he pulled Mary towards him to sit down.

As Mary was making herself comfortable she moved up to sit next to Francis and the two of them just sat there enjoying themselves. No words were needed for them to have fun together. Eventually Mary was the first to move when she lifted her head of Francis' shoulders.

"The crib for the baby arrived today" Mary told Francis. The new crib had been a gift from her sister-in-law's husband Phillip of Spain, he had told Mary through letters that only a small portion of the crib had been engraved. And, that the rest would be up to them.

"Where is it now?" Francis asked as he looked into her eyes.

"It's being moved into the nursery now that the walls have dried from the painting"

"Well now that it's here we can begin planning on how the room is going to look like" Francis stopped for a moment before continuing "We just have to hope that my mother will let us take some part on it"

Mary let out a little chuckle before giving him an answer "Yeah, well I suppose that she's just getting excited for the baby and wants everything to be perfect" Mary moved her gaze down to her swollen stomach and rested her hand onto them. Bye this point Mary's bump had grown large enough for people to notice at sight. At first, she had thought that you could only see it if you were looking for it but now it was obvious that this wasn't the case. Since she and her cousin, Elizabeth, became friends she had brought Mary some new gowns that were the newest in English fashion.

Francis, seeing this, moved to put his hand on top of hers and when he did she rose her gaze to look him in the eyes.

"Would you like to go to the nursery and see it?" Francis asked.

"Yes, please" That was all that said between them as they lifted themselves up from the stone bench and began to walk inside.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

The walk into the castle was a fun one for the two of them, often stopping to laugh at what one of them said until they reached the nursery. The room had been renovated to have a door that directly connected to their chambers so they could have access to the baby at whatever hour of day.

Even though Mary wanted everything to do with her child she had accepted the fact that as Queen of France and Scotland she would simply not have time to raise a child so she had given in to the idea of having a nanny. However, Mary had put strict rules for her: no breastfeeding the child; that was something only the mother of the child could do and secondly, she is to only be allowed to handle the child if given order by a member of the royal family.

Mary reached the door before Francis and pulled it open to reveal and empty room with only a large crib in it. The crib itself was placed in the back of the middle under a large window so that when the heat of summer comes the fresh air can be accessed quickly.

"So, what do you think?" Francis asked as he walked up behind her.

"It's perfect."

 **Sorry for not updating last week, as I said in the last chapter I've just had my end of year exams and I was too busy to write. Please make sure to leave your review in the area below, see you next week!**


	11. Love and Children

**First I wanted to say that I am so sorry for not updating, I am trying my best to get back to my normal schedule and secondly, please enjoy.**

Francis was sat alone at the head of the table where the privy council would normally meet, they had just had a meeting about when and where to pay the generals back for their work on the Scottish boarders. The conclusion they came to was that one week from now, when the soldiers returned, there is going to be a feast held in their honour.

As he was looking down at the papers he decided to leave all this to a later date and that for now it would be better to get his mind of this. Francis then stood up and left the empty room. As he was walking the only place he could think about going to was to the nursery, and to Mary. Ever since Francis had shown her the nursery Mary had practically became attached to it, and to be honest he couldn't really blame her.

Over the past few days they had been receiving quite a lot of gifts for the baby and he knew that it was having more of an effect on Mary than on him. With everything from her poisoning and the fact that she is only a few weeks off giving birth Mary had been obsessed with the baby.

At this point Francis had already reached the corridor where the nursery was located when he saw Bash at the end of it.

"Bash what are you doing here?" Francis asked as he walked over to his brother.

"I was looking for you, I knew you would be here"

"Well then, what have you come to tell me?"

Bash suddenly got a serious look in his face, the type that he only showed when he knew that the situation was dangerous. It was a look Francis hated to see, and one he had never hoped to see again after he was given a second chance at life but unfortunately the world works differently to how we thought it would be.

"I've found the wife of the man who poisoned Mary." Immediately Francis looked up from the floor to look Bash in the eyes "She lead me to their shared room where I found letters of their plot."

"And what did they say?" Francis asked with a growing impatience.

"It said the plot was done without the knowledge of Queen Elizabeth and that he is to go to Lyon where they will meet and then travel back to England."

"I want you to go to Lyon, and find him, now!"

Bash gave a small nod of head before he walked off in the direction that he had just came. Turning his head back to where he was going Francis saw two doors, not that far from each other appear to him. Even though their chambers had a door that directly connected to the nursery the outside door was there so that the nanny's and servants could come in and out.

Walking up towards the door Francis stopped for a moment before opening it to see Mary sitting on the rocking chair that was perched in corner of the room. On top of her bulging stomach was a blanket that was to be used for when the baby was born.

"Hello" Francis said as he walked into the room. Mary seemed to snap out of some sort of daze as she looked up from her belly to make eye contact with him.

"Hello Francis, how was the meeting?"

"It went well, we have agreed to pay back the generals in a feast held one week from now."

"A week? That soon?" Mary asked as she stood up from her chair, struggling slightly as she used the arm of the chair to help lift herself up.

"Yes, we need to pay them back as soon as possible and they get back only days from now."

Francis walked over to Mary and helped her balance herself as they both walked over to where the crib was placed.

"Only a few more weeks and then maybe we can put this room to use" Mary chuckled as she let out a breath. "What will it be like when the baby's born, Francis?" Mary asked as she turned to face her husband.

"It will be difficult at first. The baby will need constant attention at first, and sure we will be busy but over time it will become easier."

"Will it Francis? Will it?" Mary asked as tears started to form in her eyes.

"It will, I promise" Francis said as he pulled her into his arms.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Bash walked down the corridor from where he had just been given the order from his brother, the King of France to go to Lyon and find the man who had poisoned the Queen. It was understandable to him why he would be so angry Francis values Mary above all other things. He wasn't like his father, Henry. If something happened to Catherine the Henry probably put it up to a sudden illness and quickly move on from there.

What Francis will do with the man once he brings him back to the castle, God only knows. Before he knew Bash had found himself upon a set of double door to with he slowly opened to see his wife sat on the seat by their bed.

"Kenna, I didn't know you had returned." Bash said as he walked over to his desk and removed his belt and put it down on the table.

"Mary wanted to be alone in the nursery."

"She's been in there quite a lot recently, hasn't she?" He asked as he walked over and sat beside Kenna.

"Can you blame her? She's almost ready to give birth and because of the poisoning the doctors say that the birth will be a difficult one."

"How difficult?" Bash asked with concern in his eyes. Kenna didn't look up from her hands that rested on her dress.

"They say it is more likely that the child will live than it is for Mary."

Bash made no reply and Kenna didn't make the effort to make any further comment. They both simply sat there pondering the fate of their friend. But after a short period of time Kenna spoke up in an effort to change the mood.

"So how has the investigation gone so far?"

"Very well actually" Bash replied, causing his wife to look at him with confusion on her face.

"I found the wife of the man who poisoned Mary. She let me search the room, according to her she and her children had no knowledge of what he was doing."

"He went behind her back?"

"Exactly, although I'm not sure that he did it willingly. When I searched his room, I found letters that implied that he was being blackmailed by some others back in England."

"Being blackmailed? What will happen to him once we find him?"

"In the letters, I said that they will meet in Lyon, if I am to find him I must leave now. I can cut the journey in half as I can ride through lands that are owned by Francis. Once I find him I will take him and his associates back hear and well I can't say what will happen next."

"But Bash he was forced into this!"

"I know. It's just that when Francis finds out I don't know how he will respond when he sees them. Now I've got to go to Lyon, good bye my love" Bash gave Kenna a quick goodbye and then quickly left, leaving Kenna alone and even more confused than before.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Mary woke up to the light of the sun shining on her face. This was the favourite part of the day for her, there is nothing to worry about when all that surrounds her is the peaceful light of the sun and the pleasant feeling of the breeze. Not to mention the fact that she was alone with her favourite person in the world.

The morning was one of the only time when she could be alone with her husband and not have to put on the mask of Queen. As she turned over to view the other side of the bed she was greeted with pile of covers and nothing else.

Curious to see where her husband was Mary carefully lifted herself into a seating position and looked around their room. She didn't have to search for long as she soon laid eyes upon the figure she was searching for. Mary then let out a gentle smile as she spoke up.

"Good morning, Francis."

Francis slowly lifted his head from his desk to turn to face her with a smile on his face. "Good morning my love."

Francis then moved from his desk to their bed and gave a kiss to his with. He then moved his head down to kiss her swollen stomach. "And good morning to you too"

Mary let out a small laugh as she looked at Francis. This is what they had fought for since their marriage was arranged when she was six years old. And for the first time since her wedding to Francis Mary felt happy, truly happy.

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I am sorry again for the late update, not much to say unless that I ask you to leave your thoughts down in the review section, I love to hear your thoughts they help me to continue writing. Anyway see you next time!**


	12. Lyon (rewrite)

**So, I finally managed to find some time to write the chapter. I wanted to say that there is a poll on my profile page that I would like you all the visit after reading this chapter. Hope you enjoy.**

Bash was walking out of an inn nearby Lyon that he had stayed in for the night after riding all through the night. If he had, had it his way then he would've began searching almost immediately after arriving but he knew that it would be best if his energy was in full. Lyon was a beautiful place that Bash could consider taking Kenna one day but unfortunately that day was not today as he was here on different circumstances.

As he walked into the main street of the town he kept his eye out for anyone suspicious. Since no one saw the assassin, there was no way to narrow down the line of suspects and that meant that to Bash. Anyone and everyone might have ties to this man. And if anyone could be a suspect that meant he would have to move quickly, Lyon is a city almost as large as Paris and has a population similar to it.

Looking around he saw a local inn that seemed to be quite crowded, that to him seem like the best place to start. It made sense to him the they would convene in a place like this, hide in plain sight.

"Bash" a sudden voice said as he felt a hand being placed on his shoulder. Quickly turning around to see who it was he was greeted with the sight of his good friend Leith.

"Leith, what are you doing here?" Bash asked as he pulled him over to area where it was less crowded.

"I heard you had left for Lyon and I thought you could use some help in catching these men"

"Ok, fine you can help. Do you have any idea of who we're looking for?"

"Last night when I arrived in Lyon I saw a man ride into town and check in at the local inn."

Bash looked up to make eye contact with Leith as they both got the same thought in their minds. "He could still be there" Bash said as he shifted his to the building.

"Let's go check it out." Leith said as he and Bash began to walk towards the building. The two walked into the building where is was full of drunks and people looking to sell anything they could find. Scanning the room Leith tapped on Bash's shoulder when a particular man came in to his view.

"That man, he was the one who came into town last night." Leith said as he gave a glance into his general direction.

"What do you want to do stay here or confront him?" Leith asked.

"Stay here for now and wait for the other men to show up. Something tells me he is not as guilty as the others." Bash said as the two sat at a table that was near enough to overhear their conversation but not to near that he would become suspicious.

"What makes you say that?" Leith said with a confused tone.

"I spoke to his wife back at the castle. I also read some letters that the other men had sent him, there is evidence that they blackmailed him into it."

"Which means?"

"That he'll be the one most likely to convert to our side and if that happens then they will begin to fall and we will find out the truth of what happened"

"Alright then let's wait him out.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

"What do you think it will be like at the party? Mary asked as she and Francis walked through the gardens. It was a sunny day and now that Mary was moments away from giving birth she wanted to spend as much time outside before going into seclusion.

"It will be like any other party, smile and try not to let our true emotions out." Francis said as he let out a sigh.

"But why does it have to be like that?" Mary stopped walking and turned to face Francis "Why do we constantly have put on this mask for everyone?"

Francis moved his hands next to hers and held them close to her swollen belly "I know, I know Mary. But think of it this way: now the moments where we can be ourselves have all the more meaning."

"Thank you, Francis" Mary said as she let out a sniffle "You always know what to say to make me feel better." After a moment of silence, the two began to walk again.

"So, I heard my mother talking about some sort of dress."

Mary let out a small laugh "Catherine asked to see me a few days ago, I didn't even have time to walk through the door before she pulled me aside to try on some dress."

"What kind of dresses?" Francis asked.

"Three in total. One for the upcoming party and two for giving birth." Francis gave her a confused look as she said the last part of her sentence.

"You have outfits for giving birth now?" Francis scoffed.

"Yes, and we wear them because it's better than normal clothes."

"How so?"

"Would you want to wear a corset while giving birth?"

"Forget I said anything." Francis sighed as he gave a roll of his eyes.

Mary let out a laugh and soon Francis joined in. But unfortunately, the moment could not last forever as soon enough a messenger came running up to them. In his hands was a letter and by the looks of it, it was sent by someone very important.

"A letter from the English ambassador my King" the boy said as he handed the letter to Francis. Afterwards he quickly bowed and made his way back inside the castle.

"What could Elizabeth want?" Mary asked as she looked over Francis' shoulder to try and get a glimpse of the letters contents.

Francis carefully opened the letter so that the seal would not be broken and started to read the words aloud. "I Elizabeth, Queen of England with to come to France to meet my cousin and better our relationship with not only Scotland but France as well." Francis read as he looked through the letter.

Folding the letter back up Francis looked up toward Mary who had a face of shock on her. It was easy for him to tell that she was anxious about this offer, meeting her cousin. The person she had been born to be an enemy's with was now going to come into her home and act like nothing bad ever happened to them.

"Mary, we don't have to accept her offer. If you're not ready to meet her them we can ask her to come another time."

"No, I want to meet her actually. It would be nice to understand what all this has been like from her point of view"

"I think it would be best to have this conversation inside where we can be calmer, ok?" Francis said as he signalled for them the begin walking, but as they walked up towards the doors of the castle he heard Mary gasp.

Quickly turning around Francis saw Mary with her back arched and her hands on her stomach. As she cried out once more in pain Francis rushed to her side and supported her.

"Mary what's wrong!" Francis shouted as he helped her to stand up straight.

"The baby" She let out a breath "It's coming."

 **Thank you for your patience with this chapter. I had a couple of you ask me where the chapter was so to answer you questions this it what happened. I uploaded the first attempt 'Bumps in the road', but I quickly took it down as I wanted to rewrite it. Thank you so much and see you next week.**


	13. New life has begun

**Authors note: Okay guys I just wanted to say that I am so sorry for not post yesterday. I know that this Chapter has been long awaited and I hope that it lives up to your expectations and that it will leave you surprised by the end of it.**

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Barely a half hour had passed before the entirety of the court knew of the Queens condition and already the masses were celebrating. Every person in France from peasant boy to some of the most powerful lords and dukes in France were all hoping for two things: a boy, and heir and a healthy living child.

The child being born healthy was the most important part of it all and as it was so often said a living daughter was better than a dead son. Although Mary had hoped and prayed for a boy she would still like to have a daughter to share a bond with. If it turned out that her firstborn was that of a woman then the child would be in the same position Mary was in when she was born. She would become a Queen, in a word that was opposed to letting women be anything other than wives or mothers.

When Mary had first been taken inside the castle and into the birthing chambers she became quickly aware of the fact that the midwife had told Francis that he couldn't be in attendance during the baby's birth. Saying that this was women's work and that he couldn't be let in.

But Francis being Francis, had dug his heels into the ground and refused the be sent away and instead began demanding that he was to be allowed in. And, if this was any other midwife she would have easily given in and let him in considering that he was King and to argue with him on such a personal matter would have been disastrous for her. But mistress Nobly was unlike any other midwife in the country, she was strict and well-disciplined and always knew what to do.

Mary was sure that if not for what mistress Nobly had said to him as he tried to enter the birthing chamber for the third time, Francis would have walked straight passed her in into the room where she was lay on the bed. Currently being undressed and put into clothing more practical for a woman giving birth.

As Francis was entering the chamber the girl simply rose her hand and placed it between him, acting as if it were some barrier almost between him and the doorway. She lifted her face to make eye contact with him before saying in a stern voice. "Your pain will cause Mary more pain."

By the look on Francis' face she could tell that she had just struck an emotional cord with him as he began to slowly back away from the door with a defeated look on his face. It was clear to her that the idea of his wife being in more pain than she should be because of him was enough to be persuaded to not enter the room.

Instead Francis looked briefly into the room when he heard a scream cut throw the cold air and caught both of their attentions. Immediately, mistress Nobly turned her back to him as she rushed inside the room to begin the long process of giving birth. With nothing but a door to look at and the fact that he could not bear to listen to Mary's streams without being able to go in and comfort her he began to walk down the corridor and towards the one person he knew would be able to help him, his mother.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Catherine had been sitting at her desk dealing with important matters of state when she heard a banging noise on the door. Giving on of her guards a single he opened the door and in came a young boy, exhausted from running stumble into her chambers.

Instantly Catherine looked up at him with concern. _'What was so important that he had to run half way across the castle to tell her?'_. And, it wasn't helping as the boy couldn't give her the message right away as he was trying his best to catch his breath as quickly as possible.

"Well, what is it!" She shouted almost. If she was going to be told bad news or something along that line she would have preferred it to be quick and done with. Instead of anxious inducing and drawn out

"The Queen is in labour, your majesty." Was all he said before he backed out of the room, clearly not wanting to be there any longer then he had to for fear of facing the great Catherine de Medici's wrath. It took a few moments for Catherine to fully digest what had just been said to her before she sat down in her chair once more.

Mary was in labour and soon there will be a new prince or princess in the castle for all of France to admire. Catherine knew however that it would not be soon, far from it. With the attempt against Mary and the baby's life only a month ago the labour would be a long and strenuous one and she could only pray for her daughter-in-law's safety.

That had been over and hour ago and still she had received no on how it was all going. It didn't surprise her all that much when she thought about it. The only ones in there with Mary were her midwives, who were duty bound not to leave her side and her ladies, and probably Francis for that measure, who would never leave their friends side while she was suffering.

That was why it had been such a shock for her to see Francis walk into her room, with a tired look on his face. She had expected him to be in there with Mary, and even though men were not permitted to be in the birthing room she had just thought that he would ignore the rule and be with her anyway.

"Francis. What are you doing here?" Catherine asked as she looked up at him.

"They won't let me in so I thought that this was the next best place for me to go." Francis told her with a solemn expression on his face.

"Well if you can't go and be with Mary, help me with what to do afterwards with it."

Francis gave his mother a confused look as if to ask, _'what do you mean afterwards?'_ but soon got a hold of her meeting. Boy or girl it didn't matter, if the Queen could prove that she could mother healthy children then it would be a cause to celebrate all across the country.

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When Mary was a child and still living at Scottish court with her mother she would often her the screams of women whose labour had just begun. And although when it happened Mary was usually taken away from the scene, she would always remember them. It made her wonder how bad it was to actually in labour, and now that she was she could say with certainty that it was far worse than anything her child self could've imagined.

Although Mary was upset at the fact that she could not have Francis in the room with her as she brought their child into the world, it was still a great comfort to her that her ladies in waiting were allowed to be with her. On her left side Lola was holding her hand and on the other Greer was leaning over her with a dampened towel to use so she could wipe away the sweat on Mary's forehead and provide her with at least some comfort.

Mary was about to thank her friend but in that moment another contraction washed over her and left her unable to say what she wanted. It had almost been three hours since her labour had begun and yet to her it felt almost as if had been 3,000 years, which was why it was such a relief when she heard mistress Nobly from the other side of the bed look up at her and say. "Just a few more pushes, your grace. I can see the head crowing."

Mary knew that she should be thankful for that. Not many people had labours that only lasted three hours, most would normally be locked up in their rooms all night screaming until their voices became numb.

"Just a few more pushes Mary, the worse of it is now over." Mary heard Lola say from her from her side. If this were any other one of her ladies she would have made a comment telling them about how they possibly couldn't know what she was going through, but this was Lola. She had been through this when she gave birth to her godchild John and so she knew more than Mary how painful it was considering she ha d to give birth in a small country house.

Giving one final push, she suddenly felt all the pain she had been though, disappear without a single word. Having used all her energy Mary quickly fell down onto the bed where she was greeted with the softness of her pillow. But that did not mean that her mind was at ease, her thoughts immediately went to her child as she heard it begin to scream and wail.

"It's a girl, your majesty." The midwife said as she moved the child into the arms of one of her assistances who went of to go clean and dress the child. Although Mary was happy to have a daughter she couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed at the fact that everyone else at court had been hoping for a boy, to secure the line of succession and she had given them a mere girl.

"Come on Mary let's get your changed, you probably don't want to be in dress for longer then needs be." Greer said as she made a move to help lift her friend off the bed. Mary was about to nod in agreement, but her reply was swiftly interpreted as she let out another scream. Quickly putting her back down Greer looked over at the midwife in shock. She had already given birth to the baby there was no reason for her to be showing symptoms of labour.

"What's happening?" Mary said in between contractions.

"Nothing bad, your majesty. You're simply giving birth to twins, nothing more."

Twins. Mary almost wanted to laugh at that, she should have known. During her pregnancy, her belly had swelled up to a size larger than most but she had just assumed it was normal as her mother had told her that Scottish women were often large in size when they were with child so she had paid little attention to it. However, it did mean that one of their children were going to have to sleep with them as the royal nursery had only been expected to house one baby.

Knowing now that this would actually be the final push, Mary used what little energy she had left to bring her second child into the world and it didn't take before she heard scream come from the end of the bed. This time the voice sounded deeper than the first baby's and Mary hoped that her suspicions were correct.

"It's a boy." Mistress Nobly said as she once again handed the baby of to be washed and the clothed to which she knew it would take a while as there wasn't any prepared for him.

"Give me my daughter" Mary said as she propped herself up on top of her pillows so that she could hold her.

Soon one of the midwives came into the main area of the chamber with a bundle of blankets in her arms. As she walked over she bent down towards the bed gently handed the child to her before turning her attention back to the other baby. Greer and Lola almost instantly leaned over to get a better look at the girl.

"What shall you name her?" Greer asked.

It took Mary a few moments to think of a name as both she and Francis had never come to an agreement regarding the matter of baby names.

"Anne. He name will be Anne. And my son will be called James for my farther." Mary said as she looked over to Lola. "Can you please tell Francis that his children are eager to meet their farther, Lola."

A smile crossed Lola's lips before she got up and left the room to go and find Francis and tell him the good news.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

 **Authors note: Twins! I hope you all are happy with this chapter but before I finish I would like to make the line of succession clear:**

 **Anne – heir to the throne of England as well as Scotland.**

 **James – heir to the throne of France.**

 **I just wanted to make sure that everyone is clear about it as it will be mentioned later on in the story. And for all those who are disappointed at the fact that Francis wasn't there with Mary as she gave birth just because he wasn't there this time doesn't mean that he won't be next time… if there is a next time there is.**

 **See you next time and remember to leave a review, they really help me to stay inspired and keep writing the story for you guys.**

 **\- Charlotte**


	14. Meeting the family

**Authors Note:** **hey guys! Before this chapter starts I wanted to address a few things. Firstly, it's my birthday on the 16** **th** **and so the next chapter may take a while to get out as I won't be focusing on it as much. But I will try not to make you guys wait too long.**

 **Secondly, there was a review left on the last chapter saying that they thought that it was unfair that James was made heir to France over Anne because of his gender, even though Anne was born first. I just wanted to clear this up. I chose James to rule over France because when Elizabeth dies Anne will become Queen of England and Scotland. I thought that it would be too much for Anne to govern France as well. But I made it this way for other reasons that will be explained later in the story. I hope that this clears up any misconceptions about James' status.**

 **Anyway, enjoy the chapter!**

Catherine had tried to distract Francis from the pain of not being with his wife during the birth of his child but he would only be focused on the task at hand for a couple of minutes before he would go on some ramble on how he should be with his wife and not in her chambers. Deciding, that she couldn't distract him on his own Catherine suggested that they should go into the throne room to wait out the rest of the birth.

Francis only agreed to this on the grounds that at least he would not be confined to the small size of his mother's chambers but instead be able to walk around the large area of the throne room. Walking down to the throne room was the worst part for Francis, at this point Mary had only been in labour for an hour and forty-five minutes and every single one of those minutes, no, seconds had bee as if he had been walking around with one of his legs missing.

But as he was passing the corridor where Mary's birthing chamber was all he could hear was the agonising screams that came from his wife's lips as she used all of her strength to try and bring their child into the world.

"Francis." Catherine said gently, sensing her sons distress at the fact that he was separated from her wife while she was in so much pain. "You can't go in there, remember what the midwife said to you. And anyway, there are many people who have come from all over Europe to see the King and Queen of France and their new born child."

Francis cast his drift down to the ground as he thought about what his mother said to him. He knew that many important people had come from all over the continent to be apart of the birth of their first child. For example, his sister Leeza the Queen of Spain had come here on behalf of her and her husband Phillip. And the fact that the Queen of England was set to come her and visit court. Although some at court thought it a bad idea to invite their enemy to court it made sense to him why she would want to see the child. He or she was heir to her throne and it was in the best interest of her country to see the baby alive and healthy.

But it still didn't change the fact that right now his wife was screaming out in pain, probably wishing for him to be at her side to comfort her, and all he had to do was walk around and talk to people. It just didn't seem fair to him that this is how it was meant to be. When he looked up though he was greeted with an almost apologetic look from his mother's face as she reached out her hand towards him, beckoning for him to follow her.

Giving Catherine a weak smile Francis reached out his hand for his mother to grab a hold of when he heard the loud noise coming towards him from the end of the corridor. Quickly turning his head to see what it was, both Francis and Catherine looked up to see Lola running towards them.

"Lola. What are you doing here?" Catherine asked as she quickly began to walk to her, both she and Francis knew that Lola wouldn't be here if something hadn't happened. "Shouldn't you be with Mary?"

"Yes. Well, she sent me here to tell you that she has given birth to yours and her children."

"Children?" Francis said as he stared at her in disbelief. _'Children as in more than one.'_ Francis thought as he continued to stand there in shock. "Are you sure?"

"I was there when they were born I know." at this point Catherine moved from behind Francis to right in front of Lola with a questioning maner. "And do you know what the sex of the two children are?"

"Yes. The oldest a girl and the youngest a boy."

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Francis had barely had tome to process what Lola had said to him before he was off on his feet. Mary's chambers were only at the end of the corridor but even now, that short distance seemed like an endless journey. Soon enough though he was faced to face with the same door that blocked him from his wife when she first went into labour and the same woman who had shut the door to him was the first to open it.

From the looks of her Francis could easily that this had been an exhausting experience on her part as well, but he only gave a slight nod of his head before he rushed into the room. As he walked into the room the first thing he could see was a couple of maids who were currently washing a dress that Francis could recognise as the one that Mary was wearing when they were in the gardens eairlier.

Ignoring that he turned to look at the bed when he saw her. Mary was currently laying down on the bed, in a dress that was a deep shade of blue. It was one with no corset so that there was no danger to her health. She was wearing her hair down with a crown on top of it. She had clearly been expecting some important visitors to come in.

"Francis. Do you want see your children?" Francis only gave her a small nod before he walked towards her. In her arms Mary was holding Anne, who was wearing a gown that was much too big for her as it was meant to last until new dresses could be made for her. As he walked to the side of the bed he sat down next to Mary and leant down to look at them both.

"She's so beautiful" he said as he made a move to put his hand against his daughter's face. "what's her name?"

"Anne"

"Anne. I like it, it's a name befitting a Queen." Francis thought that Anne was a name that would remind everyone the country she came from even when she became Queen of England. It would defiantly be a name that his mother would approve of as a show of power.

It was as he was looking at them both another thought came into his mind. _His son_. "What about our son, where is he?" he asked as looked around the room to find out where he was.

"Calm down Francis." Mary almost laughed at him. "He's right here." She said as she pointed to a crib that was placed at the foot of the bed. Francis quickly rose to his feet and began to walk over to where the crib was placed. Looking at it he could tell that the crib was one that was quickly pulled out of storage as they hadn't been expecting twins, the crib itself could be quickly be recognised as the one from his childhood.

But all that was irrelevant as he looked into the crib and saw their son. As happy as he was with the perfect sight that laid before him, Francis couldn't help but think about what this meant for everyone. This boy, his son would be expected to be placed above his sister in the line of succession all because he was born a male. But he quickly put those thoughts aside as he picked up his son and walked back over to Mary, who still had Anne in her arms.

"What's our son's name?" he asked her.

"James, after my father. If that's okay with you." Mary quickly added hoping that Francis wouldn't mind that she had already named their children without asking him.

"James, I like it. Might even get us some respect from your Scottish lords." Mary looked up to him with a wide grin on her face, to which he returned. They stayed like this for the best part of an hour doing nothing but sitting there and enjoying each other's presence and their children. However, the two were eventually brought back to reality when they heard the sound of the door open and then close again. Both of them looked up to see Catherine walk towards from and sat on the other side of Mary and looked down at her grandchildren.

"Look at them! They look strong and healthy, now let me hold one of them." Catherine said quickly as she looked at them, they both gave a look to each other before Francis reached over Mary to hand James over to her. "This is your grandson, James. And this is Anne" Francis said as he motioned towards the child in Mary's arms.

"He is quite your image Mary" Catherine complemented.

"Thank you, Catherine."

"I must say though, there are quite a lot of people in the throne room eager to know of the chid, or should I say children's health."

"Do you want to bring some of them here?"

"Mary are you sure, you've only just given birth."

"I'm sure Francis."

Both Francis and Catherine nodded their heads as walked out of the room, putting James back down in his crib as they went past. Mary could guess who they would bring back, her family. That would include Leeza and Henry who had just came here from Spain as well as Charles who had been as court for several months now.

But there was one person who she was more anxious to meet than anyone else, her cousin. Right before Mary had went into labour she had received a letter from Elizabeth who asked if she could come to court. Mary had just assumed that Francis had accepted the invitation whilst she was giving birth. It was silly for her to be anxious about her cousin's arrival Mary thought. They were at peace, but it still made her feel nervous at the thought of meeting the woman, who since she was born, was told that she was her rival to the English throne. That she had a connection to as her grandfather was Henry VII.

Mary however, quickly shook those thoughts out of her mind as she looked down at her children. These two children would one-day rule over half of Europe.

 **Authors Note:** **I hope that the chapter met up with your expectations and I also hope that you guys are as excited for Elizabeth's first appearance as I am. I think she'll add a really interesting layer to the story.**

 **But as I said before it might be a while before the next update with birthday stuff going on and what not. Anyway, see you guys next time!**

 **Charlotte**.


	15. Naming an heir

**Authors Note: thank you all for your reviews, I have read over them and you guys were correct. Henry VII was not Mary's grandfather and was instead her great grandfather through her father James V and his mother Henry VII daughter Margaret Tudor.**

 **Sorry for error and I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

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"Make way for her majesty, Queen Elizabeth I of England" The guard shouted as the door swung open to revel the Queen.

"Your majesty, I hope that your journey across the channel was pleasant." The man said as bowed down to the foreign Queen.

Two days ago, Elizabeth had set off from her palace at Whitehall to make the difficult journey across the English Channel to France to visit her cousin. She had been invited to godmother to one of the children, the one that would be the heir to country.

She knew that most were expecting her to chose James as the heir because he was a boy, even though he was born second to Anne. But somehow, she felt sorry for the poor girl. Elizabeth knew first hand how much a boy was favoured over girls.

When her half-sister's mother, Katherine of Aragon couldn't give her husband a male heir he divorced her to marry her mother, Anne Boleyn. And when she only gave her farther herself he had her executed on false charges of treason just so her could marry his new love Jane Seymour.

Elizabeth had already known that James would be King of France due to the laws that only a man can assume control of the country and if the king only had female issue then the throne would pass to his brother of cousin over them.

But no such laws no longer were in place in England and as far as she could tell Scotland as well since both of their monarchs were female. Putting those thoughts aside she stepped into the carriage that would take her from where the boat landed to the royal palace.

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Francis was currently standing in the nursery looking down at his two children. When they had been born no had been expecting them to be twins but at the same time it had bolstered the pride of Scotland and France by showing that they had a Queen who was able to produce two children at once.

But as he looked down at them all he could think about was how much these children had changed his life. There were multiple concerns from the members of the court that his illness had left him unable to sire a child. But now that he was looking at them he was so glad that they were wrong. His mother had been right when she had said that there was nothing like the joy of your firstborn, and although he had John he always felt awkward around him because of his parentage.

His daughter though was his firstborn and first child of his who would be considered as a legitimate princess and one-day potential Queen consort of a foreign country when she was older. As he looked at her face he couldn't help but notice that she had a lot of features in common with himself down to her blue eyes and soft blonde hair that was on top of her head.

Whereas James was completely Mary's image. Francis couldn't help but feel disappointed at this, he had hoped that a child of theirs would be a mix of both of them instead of them taking to one of their parents respectively. Maybe with their next child it would happen.

Francis was no fool he understood the fact that although he had Anne and James he would have to produce other children as well to secure his in case his eldest son died. Also, it was a matter of politics. He knew as well as anyone else that the Scots felt occupied by the French and having a King to rule over France and Scotland who push their belief further that they were attempting a take-over of their country.

But until a second son was produced James would be proclaimed prince of Scotland, not heir, so that they wouldn't fell completely left out. Francis was soon sapped out of his daze when he heard a quick knock of the door. Allowing the boy to enter he gave him a letter from Queen Elizabeth telling him which he wanted to be her heir. _'this is going to be quite the day'_ He thought.

"Francis, there you are!" Catherine exclaimed as he turned his head to see her walk into the rooms "I've been looking everywhere for you. Although I should have guessed you would be here."

Catherine gave Francis a look of sympathy before walking up to him and placing on of her hands on his shoulders. "I know that the coming week is going to be hard for you and Mary but it has to happen."

Francis sighed as he looked at his mother, he knew that she was right. When one of his children would be declared heir they would either go to England now or in a couple of years; where they would be trained and prepared to become the next monarch. As much as he wanted to say no and keep both his children in France with him he knew it was within the best interests of his child if they were raised in England as there would be a less likely chance of the child being rejected because they viewed it as a foreigner.

"I'm fine mother. I knew that this would happen, besides Mary is the one you should be comforting."

"That poor girl" Catherine sighed "It must be hard for her to send one of her children away. But in an odd kind of it must make her even more glad to have had twins. At least now she will still have one of her children with her."

"I guess we are going to find which one will be leaving the christening is staring" and with the both France and Catherine left as the maids came in to prepare the children for the upcoming event.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Francis and Mary were currently sitting in the benches of the chapel. As per royal standard they were sitting on the front row, with the only people next to them being the extended royal family with the exception of Charles who was godfather to Anne. As well as having Charles as her godfather she had Elizabeth as her godmother which could only mean one thing if her thinking was correct.

James' godparents were the only option to Mary really. His godmother was her lady in waiting and one of her dearest friends Lola, who was the mother of her godson John. And his godfather was her husband Narcisse. She had been reluctant to give him this position but seeing as he had been trying of late to be a better husband she decided to give him to honour of being the godfather of the next king.

Both she and her husband watched with baited breath as the doors of the church opened to reveal the person that Mary had been waiting her whole life to meet. Her cousin, Queen Elizabeth. Mary looked in awe as she saw her walk down the aisle and towards the priest it was true when they said that she was a true beauty and she could easily tell why she had so many suitors vying for her hand.

But as she was holding her daughter as she passed her Mary couldn't help but feel a slight bit of apprehension. Maybe it was because she had thought of her as a rival for the English throne and therefore her enemy and now she was trusted to hold her child and possibly raise her.

"God, in his almighty and infinite grace, grant a good and long life to their royal highnesses Prince James. Prince of Scotland and Dauphin of France, and Princess Anne. The Princess of Wales, France and Scotland." The priest shouted to the crowd before taking some of the holy water and placing it upon their head and expelling and sign of the devil within.

Francis took his eyes away from the children and took a look at the crowd only to see faces full of shock. He knew what they were shocked at, Anne's title as Princess of Wales. It took him by surprise to but he could understand the reasoning behind it. James was destined to become King of France and Scotland and her and her nobles probably did this as a last-ditch effort to keep England from foreign control. But, as he was looking around his thought eairlier had been proven to be true. It would be an interesting day.

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 **Authors Note: hoped you enjoyed the chapter and sorry about being late I was in Paris seeing some of my family. And for those who didn't know I recently posted a new story for The Tudors on my page and it's basically a what if scenario in which Jane was Henry second Queen and Anne was his third. With that said I will try to get the next chapter out promptly for you guys.**


	16. Return

**Authors Note: right so I just wanted to say that the reason that this was put up so late was because I was out all last week with family and then they came back to our house. Needless to say I had very little time to write so this is going to be a shorter chapter than normal. Please make sure to leave any criticisms in the review section down below.**

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Mary was standing in the nursery looking down at her son, her precious son. Ever since he and Anne were born Mary had spent all her free time this week with them. Everything for her was perfect except for one thing, Francis. With Elizabeth arriving and the peace treaty between England and France Francis had been in one meeting after the other and at this point Mary rarely saw her husband.

But as she was looking down at her son she saw more of herself every day, he had her brown eyes and a tuff of brown hair on his head. Anne however had all the looks of her father with her blue eyes and Mary could presume that she would have blonde hair.

Mary was so lost in thought that she didn't even hear the door open or close but soon enough she could hear his voice ring through her ears. "They look beautiful don't they?"

Mary turned around to face Francis "They do. What were you talking about in the meeting?" She asked him.

"The Privy Council were having a meeting with me and Elizabeth about adding one more term to the treaty."

"And what would that be?" Mary asked. She had thought that France got everything they wanted when she brought the French soldiers back from Scotland.

"They wanted to make sure that Anne's position as heir would be secured." Francis told her.

Mary looked at him in shock for a moment "Why would we need to have that secured I thought that Elizabeth said-"

Francis interrupted her before she finish her words. "Yes but once she is dead who knows what noble with a claim to the throne will try to strike out against our daughter." Mary only nodded her head in response as his words went through her.

"There's just one thing." Francis said getting her attention "The Privy Council think have arranged that she is to go to England two days after her fourth birthday."

"But, that's so close!" Mary almost screamed "Besides that's when she starts her education."

Francis gave her a look before a wave of realization hit her. "That's what they want. To raise her to be English, no Francis. I won't allow it!"

"It's in her best interests Mary." Francis calmly stated. "The only way the English people will ever accept a foreign born Queen is if she English in every other way." Francis moved towards her and placed his arms on her shoulders and pulled her into a hug. The two stayed like this for a few moments before he moved back to look at her.

"Instead of focusing on when she will be going focus instead of the time you have with her now, the time you have both of them." He said as they turned to look at their children as James began to stir. As he started to cry Mary walked over to his crib to tend to him.

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Francis was sat in the throne with his mother stood next to him. Right now they day seemed to drag on, he had been in so many meeting and all he wanted to do was go spend time with Mary and his children. In his opinion Mary was really lucky because she had given birth a week ago she was allowed to go to bed whenever she wanted.

Francis had asked that his mother, Catherine, to sit in and advise him on what course of action to take and right now they were talking about the same old matters of state that grew quite boring to hear after a while.

That changed however, when Bash and Leith walked into the room. This immediately brought Francis out of his daze as both he and Catherine looked at him in shock, the last time they had seen them is when the two left to go to Lyon to hunt down the man who had tried to poison not only Mary but Anne and James as well.

"Brother. What are you doing back from Lyon?" Francis asked.

"Leith and I have managed to track down the man responsible for the assassination attempt on the Queen."

"Good and I trust that the man responsible for it is in the dungeons as we speak?" Catherine butted in.

"Yes however, I do regret not being here for the birth of your children." Bash said sadly as he lowered his head to look at the ground.

"Don't worry about that you're here now. Come let me show them to you." Francis joyfully stated as he got up from his throne wand walked out of the room with Bash. Leith was about to make a move to leave the room when Catherine stopped him and asked for a moment of his time.

"What is it Queen Mother." Leith was slightly nervous about talking to her. He hadn't exactly been on her good side when he, a common born man, decided to court her daughter Claude the Princess of France.

"I told you that when you completed this task you would be rewarded and I have kept my word." To say that Leith was surprised by her words was and understatement but she still had more to say "You will be created a duke and then you will marry my daughter and become royalty." Catherine said nothing else as she walked out the room without giving Leith a chance to reply as he let what she said sink in.

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 **Next Time: A Wedding to Remember. (10 points to whoever can guess what story I stole that from.)**


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